Search for a Hero
by Darien Fawkes
Summary: The Rangers have recovered the Purple Energem, but have no Purple Ranger. They must search for a hero to up the power and the responsibility. Will they find the hero they're looking for before it's too late?
1. Search for a Hero

**Legal:** I do not own Power Rangers, or the associated names, places, characters, events etc. Anything not covered by the above rights should be considered purely the creation of the author.

 **Rating:** T – may be some mild adult themes, including language and violence.

Shelby muttered some obscenities as she turned over in her bed, mashing her hand down on the alarm clock, shutting off its hellish screeching. While none of them expected any time off after their long journey to recover, they at least hoped that she would be able to arrange some later shifts for them so they could get a little more time to sleep. However, she had run out quickly after their meeting, saying something about having an idea and saying she would be back in a couple of days. While the Rangers would have liked to complain, Kendall had been stuck in the Dino Lab 24/7 since they left, and so they really couldn't begrudge her the first break.

As she got up, she heard her dad downstairs, making himself some coffee. This didn't do anything for her mood, she had been fortunate enough that when she came home, it was late and her father had already turned in for the night, but since she was due to leave for work before he was, she was sure he was bound to have some kind of lecture lined up for her.

Heading into the shower and turning on the water, she started trying to prepare herself for the day ahead. Thinking about it, she really couldn't blame her dad for having a lecture for her. The last time she had seen him, she had told him in a very off-hand hi/bye kind of way that she was heading to New Zealand for a few days! As much as she didn't see many things from her dad's point of view, she could see that it had to be something of a shock, especially since as far as he could see, her job was more of a glorified hobby than anything else. It wasn't as if there were many kids her age whose employers would send them half way around the world at the drop of a hat!

Washing her hair, she could already imagine what he would have to say. He would likely say that responsible people didn't just run off without any kind of planning, without notifying anyone that they wouldn't be around. He would likely ask how this was meant to further her ambition, once again pointing out the online courses that by her own admission Shelby had allowed to slide, and which were now long past due. He would also probably point out that while she was travelling on behalf of the museum, she sincerely doubted they were covering anything other than her normal wages, meaning that at best she was breaking even on the trip, and at worst she had ended up paying for the privilege of working.

Shelby didn't dislike that about her dad, she understood where he had come from. Watkins Ice Creams hadn't always been a successful business, it had only really taken off in the last four years. Her dad hadn't always strode around the place dressed like a cross between Wilson Fisk and Ce Lo Green. He still had his original chequered trousers and white jacket hanging in his office from when he ran the ice cream truck. The Watkins' had not started out as a wealthy family, everything they now had was literally down to him building everything from the ground up with his own hard work. It didn't make it easy to talk to him about the fact the path she had chosen in life would cost a substantial amount of money, and would most likely leave her in significant debt for years at best, presuming she ever broke even. Sadly, academics was not exactly a very profitable career path.

As she got dressed for the day ahead, she looked to the mirror, fixing her hair, and straightening herself out before heading down the stairs. She found her dad sitting on his recliner in his suit, reading the Financial Times while the news played in the background, citing the latest ridiculous statement dropped by a Presidential candidate. She always wondered why he read the Financial Times. It wasn't as if he played the markets. That was far too much like gambling for his tastes. She'd once heard him refer to the stock exchange as "casinos without the bright lights and loud music." He preferred products, actual, physical things that were tangible than numbers on a screen. He always felt a lot more comfortable when he could see and touch what was being bought and sold. He set his coffee down on the edge of the table.

"You were quiet when you came in." He stated, a slight element of accusation in his tone. Shelby knew exactly what he was inferring, that she had sneaked into the house, like she was ashamed of what she had done and was trying to get away with it. He needn't have bothered, the one thing Shelby knew through experience was that her father had a long memory. It was rare he forgot anything he took as a slight against him.

"I was trying to be considerate." She answered. "The flight came in late."

"So, how was New Zealand?" He asked her. "Did you find anything?"

"It was a productive trip." She replied as she went to the coffee maker, pouring some into her travel cup, along with some cream and sugar to her taste.

"I'll take that as a no then." He answered with a little snort, putting down his paper as Shelby turned to face him. She wanted to answer him, but it wasn't as though they brought anything back. Nothing that she could show him anyway, that was a big downside to his obsession with physical goods, it wasn't like he could put a real value on 'what she learned' from an experience. He'd have been happier with a fossil with a dollar value attached to it. "Shelby..."

"Dad, don't even start." Shelby started to say, but this only seemed to anger him further.

"I'm sorry, is it unreasonable to expect an explanation when some...casual entry-level job sends my daughter to the other side of the world without even a couple of days' notice?" He blustered as he looked to her.

"Dad, this trip was amazing! You have no idea what..." She remembered something and pulled out her book, showing him the autograph. "I spoke to Dr Runga! He signed this! I visited his dig site, his work is incredible..."

"You spoke to Dr Runga." He said with a smile, but one that Shelby knew was only going to precede further questioning. "So, did that get you any closer to that scholarship you're looking for?"

"Well...um..." Shelby stared to say, looking a little sheepish. "Actually, he's taking a sabbatical for a while..."

"So to summarise, you went halfway around the world for work, during which you brought nothing back to benefit the museum and you accomplished nothing whatsoever to advance your career." He replied. Shelby started to shift a little uncomfortably.

"I wouldn't say we accomplished NOTHING." She said in a barely audible tone. Mr Watkins just sighed and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Shelby, I don't want to hurt you. I only want what's best for you." He told her. "I've been willing to go along with this, but you remember what you promised. You said if it didn't lead to anything..."

"I said I'd give business school a go." She muttered. "But dad, I'm already doing more at the museum, and I've already gotten certificates..."

"And I have a 300 metre swimming badge, but that doesn't mean I'm going to sign up for the Olympic team." He told her. "Do you want to know what I did while you were off living it up in New Zealand?"

"Selling ice cream to some Russians?" She replied sarcastically, twirling a finger in the air. "Whoopee."

"Oh, that's old news." Her father told her with a bright smile. "I just signed an exclusive deal, which will net our company an order of over 6 million bars per year!"

"Really?" She asked, suddenly becoming a little dejected. That was a big deal, she was kind of hoping that her dad wouldn't have much to rub in her face when she got back.

"You are now looking at the sole distributer to the sovereign nation of Zandar!" He declared proudly, straightening out his suit.

"Zandar?" Shelby asked. Her father nodded.

"By personal decree of the Hereditary Prince himself!" He said proudly.

"Oh, you mean Phillipe?" She answered. "Nice guy, really serious about his workouts. Have you seen his gym? Or did he only give you the tour of his treasures?"

"I uh..."

"How was his bodyguard Margaret when you met him?" She asked him. With that, Shelby just turned and left the house with a cocky grin on her face as her father stood dumbfounded. She could imagine him spending the rest of the day trying to figure out how exactly his daughter knew the Hereditary Prince of Zandar on a first-name basis.

At the Dino Bite Cafe, Allison was in the office, going over Kendall's notes, hoping beyond all hopes that she could begin to understand what exactly she was expected to do. The museum had been looking for staff for a while now, and she had only just gotten enough applicants that it was worthwhile arranging interviews. However, ordinarily it was Kendall who would be expected to do the interviews. When she declared she had an idea and run out, interviews had already been scheduled. She just told Allison that she had left notes on what to ask, and told her to use her judgement. Allison though was having a little difficulty. This definitely seemed beyond her level of responsibility.

Kendall had told her that it was just a list of questions, but she could see that there were several notes, suggested follow-up questions and suchlike. Allison was getting a little lost in all the notes indicating what to look for in an answer. Chase and Riley came in, bringing some coffee with them.

"Are you ready for this?" Chase asked her, sitting down with her. She just shook her head.

"Ms Morgan really believes in preparation doesn't she?" She asked. "She is aware I only have a high school diploma so I don't know what most of this psycho babble means right?"

"Trust me, most of us have difficulty with what she has to say." Chase laughed as he took a seat with her.

"I really wish she had dealt with this before she went." Allison groaned. "What do I know about hiring people?"

"Well, she did leave you in charge, and she did tell you to use your judgement right?" Chase reminded her. "Well, that's all you can do then!"

"Thanks, that's really helpful." She responded sarcastically.

"I'll tell you what, how about we sit in on a few interviews with you?" Riley asked her. She just looked to them. "You know, for moral support or something."

"I...guess that might help." She answered. Chase smiled.

"Alright, then I'll just go and show the first one in." He told her. He went outside the door, fetching the first applicant. He showed the guy in, indicating a seat for him to take, before sitting around beside Allison. He had dark hair, and sunglasses, and he was wearing a Nirvana T-shirt with torn jeans. She just looked to the form he gave her.

"So, your name is Curtis, is that right?" She asked him. He nodded. "Alright, can I just ask why you want this job?"

"I don't." He told her very abruptly. She just stared at him, unable to believe what he had said.

"You don't want to work here?" She asked. "So...why are you here?"

"I need to apply for jobs so they don't stop my social security." Curtis told her honestly. "So, could you sign that to say I've applied?"

Allison was so taken aback by the whole thing, she just signed the form and gave it back to him. Curtis got up and headed out the door, leaving her thoroughly speechless.

"Well, that wasn't exactly the kind of start we wanted to make." Riley commented. "Can you believe that guy?"

"Hopefully the next guy will be better." Chase said rather hopefully. "NEXT!"

On the road out of the city, Kendall rubbed her eyes. She was exhausted, not only because of the fact she had spent days in the Dino Lab while the Rangers were out of the country, but also because she had left the city as quickly as she possibly could once she realised that they needed to find a bearer for the Purple Energem.

She had never met Albert, and as such she had nothing against him. In fact, as far as she knew from the information she gathered about their battles, he had done them a great service as Purple Ranger. He had found the Energem, he had kept it safe despite the fact he was being pursued relentlessly by Fury, even without any kind of training in how his powers worked or how to use any of his equipment. He had even found and activated the Plesio Zord, bringing the Rangers a powerful new weapon for their arsenal.

She understood his decision to stay in New Zealand. She understood why he didn't want to leave the only home he had ever known when he had lived his whole life there. It was way too much to ask of him. They also owed him a great deal, and so when he made it clear he genuinely didn't want to be a Ranger any longer, there really was no point in trying to force him. Even if they could force him to come, having someone who didn't want to be there in the field would only seek to weaken the team and put them in danger. When all was said and done, it was for the best that Albert was separated from his Energem.

Unfortunately, that left them in a hazardous situation. The Purple Energem had been unbonded, but since Albert was still alive, the bond existed in something of a limbo state. The Energem now no longer repelled others. One of the things that was an advantage to the Rangers was that until they were bonded, the Energems would repel anyone they deemed unworthy, violently as Kendall had found out through painful experience. Now that the Purple Energem no longer repelled people, anyone could carry it. It was a lot of power for anyone to carry, and now there was nothing to stop just anyone picking it up if they somehow lost it.

That left them only one option. They needed to break the flux state. They needed someone else to bond to the Purple Energem, and they needed it quickly, before Sledge and his cronies figured out there was an Energem that was able to be handled. Turning off the main road, she yawned loudly. She had only given herself time to pack a bag and have a short rest before she set out. However, time was against them. Given how often Sledge and his crew had spied on them, she doubted it would be long before someone figured out there was an Energem up for grabs. As she got close to her destination, she pulled up and stopped, getting out of the jeep, deciding to make the rest of the journey on foot.

It was a reasonable walk before she got to her destination. When she got there, she saw a man standing in a field, a little way off. A smile crossed her face as she approached him, and her heart quickened. He still hadn't seen her, perfect! She leapt up, snatching the hat off his head, causing him to spin around in surprise as she landed by him, twirling the hat and putting it on her head. He started to laugh, and a huge, bright smile crossed his face as he grabbed her, picking her clean up off the ground in a tight hug.

"KENDALL!" Matt called out, spinning her around before placing her back down on the ground, looking to his girlfriend happily. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, a certain someone kept saying I should really come and see this harvest festival, so I thought...maybe I should take him up on it." Kendall replied. "I wanted to surprise you!"

"Well, you definitely did that!" He laughed as he looked to her, seeing her standing before him. They had been dating for a while, but they didn't really get to see each other as often as they would have liked. They did try to get to see each other when they could, but between Matt's work on the farm and Kendall's time taken up by the museum and the Ranger business, they unfortunately didn't have a lot of time to visit each other. "You're really here for the festival?"

"I figured I could stay across the festival." She answered. "I'm parked a little way down the track. I was going to head into town and get a room at the inn..."

"You will do no such thing!" He insisted. "You're staying right here!"

"Here? On the farm?" She asked him, sounding a little uneasy. "Are you sure your mom would be alright with that?"

"Trust me, mom would insist on it." He assured her.

"Then I guess I'll go and get my bag." She told him, heading back for the jeep. Matt called out, stopping her. She turned to face him.

"Watch your step." He told her. "You were about to step in manure."

She smiled as she heard him say this.

"My hero." She answered, turning and heading to the jeep, carefully stepping around the offending manure.


	2. Application Process

"So, when I saw Sasha carrying a tray of bacon grease, I asked her to hold up a minute, then I took his precious veggie patty and soaked it right in that bacon grease until it was dripping, before I put it on the grill." The latest applicant laughed as he relayed a story to the interview panel. "I mean, he was making such a huge deal about it, 'are you sure it isn't made with animal fat? Is it cooked on the same grill with the meat patties?' God it had us laughing for ages when he took that burger." Allison, Chase and Riley all just blinked at him, just staring blankly.

"O...kay." Riley responded, looking to Allison. "You're the supervisor...thoughts?"

"That's...not really what I meant when I asked you to recount a time you dealt with a difficult customer." Allison responded. The guy being interviewed just looked a little confused. "Do you really think that's such a great story?"

"Well, he was being such a pain about it..."

"If he was making such a big deal about whether or not there was any animal fat in it, don't you think there might have been a REASON?" Allison suggested. The guy just continued to look gormless as she pressed the issue. "What if he'd had an allergy? You could have sent him to the hospital!"

"Thanks for coming. I think we've got everything we need." Chase told him as he gestured to the door, escorting the man out.

"Really?" He asked. "That's great! So, did I get it?"

"We'll let you know." Riley responded as forced a smile. "We still have people to see, and we do have to be fair to the others that applied."

"Right, got you!" The guy replied as he left. Chase closed the door behind him before bursting out laughing. Riley threw his pen over his shoulder, rolling his eyes, while Allison just smacked her head to the desk, pounding her fist to let out her frustration and disbelief.

"Is that guy even serious?" Riley asked. "How could ANYONE be that dumb?"

"What the hell has happened to the world?" Allison muttered. "Seriously, how does Ms Morgan deal with all the freaks that come in for interviews?"

"Should I show the next one in? Or do we need a minute?" Chase asked, trying to compose himself. Allison just gestured to him to open the door.

"Let's just get it over with." She grumbled. "NEXT!"

Over at the farm, Matt came to the house, finding his mother bringing in large pails of milk. He came over, taking one of the buckets from her as she struggled up the path with it.

"Mom, you know you're not meant to struggle with this stuff, there are plenty of people on the farm these days." Matt told her.

"Matt, those men work for Anton, not us." She reminded him.

"Anton also said they'd help us around the place." Matt reminded her. "If I'm not around, you can always ask them to..."

"Matt Griffin, I am perfectly capable of carrying a little milk." She said, seeming to become a little short.

"Really, do you think Dr White would agree?" Matt asked her. "You need to take care of yourself. You know your back is..."

"Matt, I was lugging around these pails long before you were born!" She answered.

"Mom, we have a visitor." Matt informed her, gesturing to Kendall to change the subject. Mrs Griffin, much like her boys had a stubborn streak, and although she was starting to accept the fact there were certain things that were just no longer practical for her to do. For one thing, she was only barely in the five foot region and was in no danger of breaking a hundred pounds. For another, she wasn't getting any younger. He knew he could, as he had several times, have this argument with his mother all day with no danger of winning, but if there was anything Mrs Griffin valued more than her pride in earning her own way through life, it was hospitality to a guest. She put the pail she was carrying down and came over to Kendall, smiling brightly.

"Kendall, it's wonderful to see you again! It's been far too long!" She greeted her. "Is Riley...?"

"It's just me I'm afraid, I'm taking a couple of days." Kendall told her with a smile. "Matt kept on at me to come to this harvest festival so I finally figured; maybe I'd take him up on it."

"She was going to stay in town." Matt said with a little smirk that betrayed the fact he knew exactly what his mom would say to that idea. He had already all but invited Kendall to stay himself.

"Oh, you will do no such thing Kendall! Here, give me that bag!" She told her, snatching Kendall's bag from her in a startling grip. "Come, I've got some wonderful sausage from the butcher...you're not vegetarian are you?"

"Not since the last time she was here." Matt answered as he was about to pick up the second pail. Kendall stopped him.

"I can take it." She told him. He just looked to her.

"Are you sure?" He asked her. Kendall just glared back.

"Are you saying I can't?" She replied. He just held up a hand.

"Hey, I know better than to try and stop you." He replied as he headed for the house. Kendall grabbed the pail and went to pick it up, but found herself stumbling as it barely moved. She tried again, but it just felt like she was more likely to tear her arm out its socket than shift it. She steadied herself and braced, this time lifting it with both hands. She managed to lift it, but she had to admit having a certain admiration for Mrs Griffin now that she saw what a full pail of milk actually weighed.

"Good grief." She managed to get out, steadying the weight of the pail as she made her way towards the house. She got into the kitchen, seeing the other pail on the floor. She was grateful to put it down. Mrs Griffin arrived back in the kitchen as she straightened herself out.

"This is really kind of you." Kendall told her. "I wouldn't mind getting a room in town, but I guess if Riley's not going to be here I could always use his room..."

"Oh, well...if you insist." Mrs Griffin answered. Kendall looked a little confused. "Well...I mean...I'd have thought you'd have been more comfortable in Matt's room."

"In...in Matt's..." Kendall started to say. Mrs Griffin just laughed a little.

"Please, we're all adults. I know these things happen." She told her.

"Mom, Kendall just arrived." Matt reminded her as he returned to the room, putting his arm around Kendall. "At least let her get unpacked before you give her the third degree."

"Dinner should be on the table shortly." She told them. "Matt, why don't you show her where everything is?"

Kendall was thankful for the interruption. While Mrs Griffin did know about the relationship between them, and supported it, Kendall wasn't entirely sure she was overly comfortable discussing the finer points of exactly where they were in the relationship with Matt's mom. He took Kendall by the hand and took her from the kitchen.

"I'm sorry about mom." Matt told her, taking Kendall upstairs. She breathed a little sigh of relief as they finally left the kitchen. "I know she can be a little full-on."

"That's one way of putting it." Kendall said as he took her upstairs. She could see the room that was clearly Riley's. There were posters on the walls depicting a number of old swashbuckling movies. The room was meticulously tidy and ordered, much like she'd expect from Riley. On the desk was a microscope, a computer, and a chemistry set, all of which looked completely out of place in the farmhouse. On the wall, there were a bunch of awards and certificates, likely for his academic achievements. On the desk, there was a chess set which was set up for a game that Riley had clearly abandoned when he went to Amber Beach, and a Rubik's cube.

"Mom insists she wants it to be just how he left it for any time he comes home." Matt told her, noticing the smile on her face as he closed the door over.

"That is...pretty much EXACTLY how I pictured Riley's room." She chuckled. "His room at the apartment is a little more...cluttered. I think the guys are a bad influence on him."

"Should I be concerned about how much time you spend thinking about my little brother's room?" He teased her as they got to his room. Kendall just shoved him playfully as he let her inside.

Matt's room was a lot less cluttered. In fact, it was by comparison practically empty. There was only a bed, a chair and a table. It looked almost more like a vacant motel room than a bedroom someone actually lived in. The only thing that indicated Matt used the room for anything other than sleeping was a rifle and a shotgun on a rack on the wall, and a small metal box on the desk, next to a pestle and mortar. Since there wasn't any noticeable means of cooking around, so she sincerely doubted he used it to grind herbs.

"Well, this is...nice." She said, trying to think of something to say about the room. Matt couldn't help smiling.

"It's a little different from Riley's right?" He asked her.

"I just...I guess I was expecting a few more personal touches." She told him. "You know, little nick nacks, souvenirs from places you've been. Some old toys perhaps maybe."

"My stuff's all over the house." He told her, coming across and putting his arms around her. "My shooting awards and my high school certificates are in the living room. As for souvenirs...well, you kind of have to go places to pick them up."

"So there were no little keepsakes?" She asked him. "No stamp collection? No toys?"

"Most of my old toys I handed down to Riley, the ones he wanted to keep anyway. Others went to the church." He answered. "I never had much use for them. Dad passed when I was fifteen. I spent most of my time working after that."

"Come on, surely there's something." She pressed on, taking the key necklace out of her blouse and showing it to him. "Even I have a few things just for myself in my room."

"I guess I just always thought of the farm as my own space." He answered her, drawing her closer. As he was about to kiss her, she noticed her suitcase on the bed. She just gave him a little look as she pulled away a little.

"You brought my bag to your room?" She asked him. "Don't you think that was a little presumptuous?"

"Are you objecting?" He asked her.

"I guess not." She replied, closing over the door. As he closed in, she held a hand to his chest, keeping him at arm's length.

"Matt, there is another reason I came here." She told him, reaching for her pocket. "There's something I want to give you..." Matt silenced her with a finger to her lips. He started to close in.

"I'm sure whatever you have to say can wait until after..."

"MATT! KENDALL!" Mrs Griffin shouted from the kitchen. "Dinner's ready!"

"Perfect timing mom." He chuckled. "Whatever it is, I'm sure it can wait for now right?"

"I...I guess so." Kendall replied as he opened the door and headed for the kitchen.

"Mom, did you get the mustard...?"

"It's already on the table sweetheart!" Mrs Griffin assured him. Kendall pulled the Purple Energem out of her pocket, looking to it for a moment. She knew that they needed to get it bonded as soon as possible, certainly before Sledge found out about it. She knew that every moment the Purple Energem was unbonded, it increased the risk that Fury or one of the others would find out about it.

"Kendall, are you coming?" Matt called up to her. Kendall slipped the Energem back into her pocket and smiled. It was a calculated risk, but she was sure she could hold off on asking Matt to take the Energem until tomorrow.

"I'm just coming." She replied as she headed down the stairs.

Back at the museum, the interviews were barely going any better than they had been. There was some entertainment to be had at first, but as the day wore on, Allison's patience started to wear thin.

"So I grabbed that guy by the scruff of the neck and tossed him out!" The latest applicant told her. "I mean, who seriously tries to pay for a coffee with a hundred dollar bill and no change?"

"NEXT!"

"So, would you mind paying me cash in hand? I kind of have a little issue with the IRS..."

"NEXT!"

"My religion forbids me from taking orders from a woman or serving meat..."

"And so you apply for a job in a burger joint?" She snapped, throwing her hands up in the air. "NEXT!"

As Chase showed the latest applicant out, Allison just banged her head on the desk in frustration.

"When...will...it...end?" She said, continuing to bang her head.

"Well, don't worry; it looks like we only have a couple left." Chase said, looking to the waiting area. "You, the blonde one, in you come."

A girl came around the door as Chase showed her in, looking a little nervous as she entered. She was only around five foot three, and very slight in frame, with shoulder-length blonde hair, which she wore in a distinctive style, with two long plaits pulled back and tied behind her, holding the rest of the hair back out of her face. She had bright blue eyes, and was wearing an aquamarine shirt and black denims. She smiled as she got to the desk, putting down her CV.

"Leanne?" Riley asked excitedly, seeing her sitting opposite the interview panel. "What are you doing here?"

"You know each other?" Chase asked him. Leanne put her hand over her mouth as she laughed a little, while shaking Riley's hand.

"We met a few months ago." Leanne told them. "We met at the...um...LARP group."

"LARP group?" Allison asked as chase closed the door to ensure no one else outside the office heard them. "You mean the tournament?"

"You...you know about that?" Leanne asked as they all looked to her. Riley just smiled and looked to the others.

"Yeah, I met Leanne at the tournament. She gave me a favour before my final joust." Riley told them. He could see that she was a little surprised that Riley was so forthcoming about the tournament. The Mystics were very selective about who they allowed to even know about the All Realms Tournament, much less compete. "But...I thought you lived in Briarwood!"

"My folks moved out here a couple of months back. I've been going to the local High School." Leanne informed him. "I figured it was about time I got a part-time job and when I saw this place advertised, I remembered you saying something about it."

She looked to the other two people in the room.

"So...you know about Riley?" She asked them. Riley just nodded.

"You know how I was able to change?" Riley asked her. "Well, Chase is a member of my team. Allison helps us out."

"So...you know." Allison sighed.

"I guess that could come in handy." Chase responded. "You know, one less person we have to lie to about what we're doing when we get an alarm."

"There are just a few more things we need to check on." Allison asked her. "Do you have any issues with the IRS?"

"No." Leanne asked, looking a little confused.

"Any violent outbursts towards customers?" She asked.

"No." Leanne answered, completely confused. "Though the trolls could really try my patience at the last place I worked."

"The internet is full of assholes I agree." Allison told her.

"Um...I meant ACTUAL trolls." She clarified. "Believe me, when a river troll tries to argue the finer points of the difference between medium rare and medium well it rarely ends on friendly terms."

"So you're used to dealing with difficult customers is how I think I'll phrase that." Allison answered. "You have a lot of experience in food service?"

"I've been serving in cafes since I was...um...I've been in food service for about five years." She answered. Allison looked to her.

"Just one last question." She replied. "What's your favourite dinosaur?"

"I guess...the Oviaptor?" She suggested. Allison just reached for the button maker, writing Leanne's name down under a picture of an Oviaptor and put it in, twisting the handle and popping out a fresh button for her.

"Please tell me you can start tomorrow!" Allison begged her. Leanne covered her mouth as she giggled a little.

"Are you serious? I have the job?" She asked. Riley rounded the table, hugging her tightly.

"Welcome aboard!" He declared loudly, before letting her go, and backing up a little, offering her a handshake. "Um...well...you know...welcome to the team."

Meanwhile, in another part of the city, Koda arrived at Alessandra's motel. He had spent hours wandering the streets, trying to think of what he would say to her. Kendall had told him that during the time he was away, she had stumbled onto the base, and so she knew who the Rangers were.

Koda had always disliked lying to her, and a part of him was happy that Alessandra now knew he was a Ranger, but Kendall had also told him that that was all she had told her. She hadn't told her anything about where, or more accurately when Koda had come from. That filled Koda with a sense of dread, knowing that was still something he had to explain to her.

The thought had occurred to him that it was a conversation he would have to have eventually. Even, all going well, once Sledge and his crew were gone and the Rangers were no longer needed; he knew that eventually he would have to tell her if he wanted any kind of lasting relationship.

He loved her more than anything. He would often find himself thinking of her whenever she wasn't around. He was working hard to learn how to make a life for himself in the world, but now, he wasn't thinking about a life of his own. He had imagined a life with her; he had considered the possibility of a family, all the things he had hoped for back in his own time. He knew that none of it would be possible though without her knowing everything.

He made his way to the door and knocked on it, waiting for an answer. Eventually, Alessandra answered it. She was happy to see him, and greeted him, but it was a lot more subdued than he was expecting. Was she already having difficulty with the fact he had hidden who he was from her.

"We need talk." Koda began. Alessandra just nodded her head and showed him inside.


	3. Difficult Talks

The farm was very still at night after dinner. The work was done, and dinner was as well. Kendall was so full she could hardly move. Mrs Griffin didn't appear to believe in small portions, and Kendall didn't feel it would be exactly polite to leave more than half her plate untouched. Still, once dinner was done, Matt had invited her to walk with him into town. Although all she really wanted to do was sleep after such a large meal, she did appreciate the opportunity to work some of it off, and to get some time alone with Matt.

Kendall had been brought up in cities most of her days, but she had travelled quite a bit in her time, and sometimes she found herself places that were a little out of the way. Anton's island was isolated by design. She had been to digs in areas that had barely seen technology reaching into the 20th century. She had even once been in a region of Africa where the only technology was the communications and land survey equipment her team had taken with them. She had to admit that she was generally most comfortable in cities, but right now, heading into town with her arm in Matt's, there was a little part of her that saw an appeal in the quiet.

"Wow, the place looks great." Kendall said as they finally arrived in town. She had heard all about the fire. Millport was still a little backward, looking a lot more like something from a Western movie than a modern town. While that was part of its appeal, the fact the majority of the buildings were still made primarily of wood meant that when the fire took hold, it very quickly took most of the town. While he knew that Phillipe had pledged to foot the bill for the materials, the town's people had insisted on doing the work themselves. She was surprised to see that the town was completely rebuilt already. More than that, a lot of them had already started to hang up decorations for the festival the following day.

"Yeah, everyone pitched in. It was something to see." Matt told her. "When it's your own homes and businesses, people are really invested in it."

"I can see that." Kendall said with a smile as they arrived at the tavern. Matt showed her inside. The usual clientele were there, unwinding after a hard day's work. When he stepped in, there were a lot of spirited welcomes from the regulars and the staff. Matt took his hat off as he got to the bar, sitting with Kendall.

"That's quite a welcome." Kendall commented. Matt just shrugged.

"Everyone knows everyone around here." The barmaid, Jess answered, coming over to them. "Of course, being the local hero doesn't hurt matters at all."

"Jess was one of the ones I saved from the fire." Matt explained to Kendall as he indicated that he was looking for two beers. "So, how's Stevie?"

"He's getting along just fine. He's really looking forward to the festival." Jess told him. She gently patted her slightly expanding belly. "He's still not too happy to hear he's going to be sharing things with little Matthew in a few months, but I think he'll get there."

"Matthew?" Kendall asked, accepting the beer. Jess just smiled and nodded in response.

"What else would I call the little one? If it wasn't for Matt here, neither me nor Stevie would still be here." Jess responded. "So is this the girl you keep telling us about?"

"Kendall." She introduced herself. Jess shook her hand.

"You take care of this one, he's a real hero." Jess told her.

"Oh, you don't have to tell me twice." Kendall agreed, going with him to a table and sitting down. Matt took a long swig of his beer, looking to her. "Wow, you really are everyone's hero around here aren't you?"

"When people need help, I try and help out." He said with a shrug. Kendall couldn't help smiling as he said this. He had run into a burning building, he had undoubtedly saved two...no, three lives according to Jess. While she could remember giving him hell for risking his life, the one thing she couldn't deny was that his actions were heroic. He didn't stop to consider the danger; he had run in to save them regardless. No one could blame him for milking it a little either, but that didn't occur to Matt at all. To him, someone needed help and he went to help. Her hand strayed to her pocket, where the Purple Energem was sitting. "So, what is it?"

"I'm sorry?" She asked him, looking a little startled. Matt just laughed at the reaction.

"Well, as much as I love seeing you, I don't remember you being terribly enthusiastic about the Harvest Festival." He responded. "So why are you really here?"

"Do I need a reason to come and see my boyfriend?" She asked him. Matt just looked to her in that way he had that let her know he could see through her. She both liked and disliked it in equal measure.

"Well, as flattered as I am, I remember how much you like the slow pace of the farm life." He replied. "You said you had something you wanted to talk about?"

Kendall took a long slug from her beer, before reaching into her pocket and pulling out the Energem. She was in two minds about this plan. She would love the chance to get Matt to come to Amber Beach where they could be together more often, and a part of her wondered if maybe that wasn't clouding her judgement. However, the more she thought about it, the more sense it made. Matt was strong, Riley had told her many times about all the accidents and injuries he'd walked away from that by all rights should have needed hospital treatment. Like Tyler, he was unfailingly brave, risking himself without a second thought to help others for no other reason than it was the right thing to do. He was genuine in his courage, not seeking any form of praise or acknowledgement. In many ways, as soon as Riley had said that they were looking for a hero, she couldn't think of anyone that satisfied all the criteria more than Matt.

"There is something I want to talk to you about." Kendall told him. "Something I wanted to give you actually."

"Now I'm really curious." Matt said, raising an eyebrow. He could see Kendall was hesitating a little, and that was something he had never known her to do. She was never backwards about coming forward when she had something she wanted to say. He took her hand. "Kendall, whatever it is, you can tell me."

"The thing is..."

"MATT!" A little voice screeched, interrupting them. They both looked around as Jess came over, carrying her son with her. Matt's face lit up as he saw him.

"Stevie!" He greeted the little boy, taking him from his mother. "What are you still doing up?"

"He heard you were here and refused to go to bed until he saw you." Jess answered. Kendall just slipped the Energem back into her pocket as he spent some time talking with the little boy. "Sorry, was I interrupting anything?"

"It's nothing that can't wait." Kendall assured her. "Um...isn't it against the law for kids under 21 to be in the bar?"

"Well, you see that table over there?" Jess asked. Kendall saw a man and a woman having a quiet drink in the corner. "Since the guy is the local sheriff and the woman he's with is the local magistrate, I think we're good."

"I guess that's alright then." Kendall replied, settling back in her chair with her beer. Matt just looked to her.

"So, what is it you wanted to talk about?" He asked her. Kendall just smiled.

"Like I said, it's nothing that can't wait." She assured him.

Over in Amber Beach, Koda was sitting in Alessandra's motel room as she came back, having gone to fill her ice bucket. Koda didn't really know what to say to her, how to explain things to her. Words really were not his strong suit. He had improved greatly in his language skills, but he knew that wasn't the only issue. Kendall was good with these kinds of things. Even when he didn't really understand a lot of the big, long, complicated words that sometimes he couldn't even believe were words, she would always find a way to put things that he could understand. She would be able to find ways to make even strange and complicated things like his weapons and money and television seem simple. He wasn't sure he could do the same with Alessandra. She poured both of them some wine from a large box.

"I think we both need." Alessandra said as she sat with him, putting the glass in his hand. Koda wasn't much of a drinker. His tribe would make what he understood to be a rudimentary form of beer back in his time, but it was nothing like the wide variety of drinks available in the modern era. He took a drink, feeling like it might help him with his nerves telling her all she needed to know.

"I need tell you truth." He told her. "You know I Blue Ranger." Alessandra just nodded in response. Koda pulled the Blue Energem out of his shirt, letting her see it. Alessandra took it from him, looking at it as he tried to think what to say next.

"This my Energem. It give me power." Koda explained to her. "Keeper bring Energems to Earth long ago. They bond to dinosaurs..."

"Dinosaurs?" Alessandra asked him. She didn't claim to be much of a student, but she had graduated High School. She knew enough to know that dinosaurs died out long before the first humans showed up on Earth. Koda nodded in response.

"They carry spirits of dinosaurs with great strength. They bond to us and give us much strength. My Energem have spirit of stegosaurus. My Energem bond to me long time ago." Koda told her. He looked to the mask lying on Alessandra's dresser. He picked it up, holding it in his hands. "You wear this to honour your ancestors, yes?"

"Aztecs wear masks in battle." Alessandra answered with a sigh. She hadn't told him about the incident at the last show yet. She had worn her mask since the first time she had stepped into the ring. "It part of my heritage."

"I paint to honour my past." Koda told her. "But not my ancestors...my family."

"I not understand." Alessandra replied as Koda took her hand in his.

"Since I bond to Energem, I not get older." Koda told her. "I bond to Energem long time ago. Before your Aztecs. I...caveman."

Alessandra didn't know how to take this news. She just stared at him, not knowing if this was some kind of joke. Koda never lied to her, that was one of the things that she loved about him. If he was telling the truth though...she just didn't really know how to process it. He didn't speak very well, his speech was still quite stilted and broken, but she always presumed it was because like her he was foreign. He looked Asian; oriental...she just assumed that like her English was his second language and he was still learning.

"You...you caveman?" She asked for confirmation. Koda just nodded in response.

"Kendall find me in glacier, frozen." He explained. "She say I there...100 thousand years?"

Koda didn't begin to know how Alessandra would understand that. He didn't either. He understood mathematics, but he couldn't begin to comprehend what a hundred thousand years meant in any real context. He had only been out of the ice for just short of two years. Shelby seemed to have a new phone with new fancy features every few months...Kendall had even told him that most of the technology in her lab was based on concepts in technology like computers that had barely even existed for a century. If he couldn't understand what a hundred thousand years meant, how could anyone else?

Alessandra just looked to Koda, and a million questions were swirling around in her mind. She just couldn't quite get her mind around what Koda had told her. He was a Ranger, he was given his power by a mysterious gem that had been brought to Earth...what did that even mean? Who was this "Keeper" that he spoke of? Most of all, she struggled with a thought of the last thing he had told her. He was a caveman.

Like everyone, she had heard the term, and she had grown up with a certain mental image of them. She heard people refer to men as "Cavemen" or "Neanderthals" whenever they displayed attitudes or behaviour that was considered backwards or unenlightened. She had used the word herself when men tried to make lewd suggestions to her that they would advance her career if she did them certain favours, or when they belittled her for the fact she was a woman, or insulted her because of her heritage.

Whenever she had thought of cavemen, she thought of beasts that looked a little like men that reacted with fear and anger to fire, that would willingly smash each other's skulls in for a meal or drag a woman to their cave to mate. That was what she thought of when she had heard the word caveman.

As she looked to Koda though, she couldn't see any of that. All she could see was the affectionate, gentle, kind man that she had fallen hard for. She could only think of Koda showing anger a few times, and in all those times, she couldn't think of him as the savage that came to mind with the term caveman. He was the one who helped her when she was hurt. He was the one that always made her feel better when he was around. She knew something of prejudice; she had faced it herself in her life. She couldn't see a savage in Koda, all she could see was the man she loved.

"I no mean lie to you. I not like lie to you." Koda told her apologetically, taking both of her hands in his. "I promise, anything you want ask, anything you want know, I not lie anymore."

She looked up to him, looking straight into his eyes, and could see the sincerity in them. Despite what he had said, what it felt like to him, Koda had never lied to her. He hadn't told her, but he hadn't lied to her. It was one of the things she loved about him. She took the glass from him and put it on the bedside table, kissing him softly as she pressed him down gently to the bed.

"I love." She told him. Koda just looked up to her as she hung over him.

"I love too." Koda answered as she lowered herself down, kissing him as she reached to the lamp and turned it off.

Back in Milport, Kendall and Matt arrived back at the farmhouse after a couple of drinks. Kendall had hoped to approach the Purple Energem issue with him, but she hadn't reckoned on his fan club. He really was the town hero. Once he managed to convince Stevie to go to bed, the Fishers came over to meet Matt's girlfriend. Kendall had learned that Matt had spent much of his youth getting into scuffles with the Fisher boys, but that some time back, he had stood up for them against Phillipe when he first arrived in Milport. After that, for the rest of the night, more well-wishers came past. Hell, even the Mayor stopped by to talk to Matt and ask if he wanted to help judge the Harvest Princess contest. He politely declined but by the time all was said and done, there really wasn't a good opportunity to talk to him about Ranger business where they wouldn't be overheard.

Kendall hung up her jacket as she got in, kicking off her shoes as they arrived. The lights were out, indicating that Mrs Griffin had already turned in for the night.

"Well, it looks like we've got the place to ourselves." Kendall commented as they made their way inside. "Matt, there is..."

"Wait, hold that thought." Matt told her as he started sniffing the air. "Oh man, you've got to be kidding..."

He ran into the kitchen, at which Kendall followed him. He was like a kid at Christmas as he found an apple pie sitting on the table waiting for them. It had a note with it.

"Your mom baked us her apple pie?" She asked, remembering the last time she'd had it. Mrs Griffin really was a wonderful cook, and she had a special fondness for her apple pie. Mrs Griffin had made that the night before she let Kendall know that she knew about her and Matt and gave her blessing to them.

"Aw mom, you are a legend!" Matt stated as he picked up the note. "The pie should have cooled by the time you get home. Have a good time."

"Matt, there's something..."

"You heard her." Matt interrupted her as he took the pie and came over towards Kendall.

"Matt, we really..." He silenced her with a soft kiss as he put his arm around her.

"I thought it was nothing that couldn't wait." He teased her. He raised his eyebrows, at which Kendall just smiled.

"The hell with it." He responded, putting her arms around him as they headed for his room. "It can wait until tomorrow."


	4. Happy Morning

Kendall stirred awake in the bed, turning over, only to find the other side of the bed empty. She was a little disappointed that she woke up alone, but as she sat up the bed and could see the light streaming in the window, she realised Matt must have already gotten up to begin his chores. Although the harvest festival was today, she was well aware that work on the farm didn't really end, and so he was probably just up to try and get it out of the way early so that they could head over for the festival opening.

She got up, stretching as she yawned in exhaustion. Although she couldn't say she was disappointed, she was still more than a little tired. She'd spent most of the previous day travelling, and she had fallen asleep quite late thanks to Matt. She couldn't say she was disappointed by that. She looked around as she heard a shotgun blast. She wasn't exactly surprised, she was deep in the farming community now, but it did bring her attention to Matt's desk and to the tools on it. The pestle and mortar, the tool kit...she picked up the pestle and sniffed it, confirming her suspicion. It had a distinct smell of sulphur and carbon, and had some black staining at the bottom. She was sure if she opened the tool box, she would find shotgun shells and shot. Matt obviously made a lot of his own ammunition.

Heading for the bathroom, noticing that Mrs Griffin's room was also empty. It was a good thing, since it would limit the chances of an embarrassing encounter coming out of the shower. She ran the water until it was hot enough, and headed inside, getting washed up for the day ahead. She had to admit being a little disappointed that Matt wasn't there with her in the morning. She had never really considered herself an especially affectionate person, even handshakes were usually the stretch of her physical contact greetings and it took her a while to get the intention when Shelby insisted on a fist-bump after they'd "crushed it" with the E-tracer. Koda...well...Koda was a hugger, something that she had gotten used to out of necessity but even now, she kind of preferred it when people maintained a little bit of a distance. That was different with Matt though, when she woke up, she was hoping to still have his arms around her, or at least to feel the warmth of him still beside her in the bed.

As she dried herself off and wrapped a towel around herself, she headed back into Matt's room. It was only then that she noticed that there was an outfit laid out for her. It certainly wasn't anything like what she normally wore, she knew for certain it wasn't her clothes, but it was clear it was laid out for her. It was a set of jeans, and a white and purple plaid shirt, with a bandana scarf laid out. There was a note beside it.

"Things get messy at the festival, so I took the liberty of looking out some old clothes for you." She read the note with it. She smiled a little as she realised that it was Matt's mother. She was happy that Mrs Griffin approved of her, but she was starting to find it a little strange how much she seemed to be pushing them both. She dutifully started to get dressed, and headed downstairs. When she got there, she found another note on the kitchen table.

"We'll be back by 11, help yourself to breakfast." Kendall read aloud. "There's food and milk in the fridge, coffee in the cupboard and kettle on the work surface."

Kendall headed to the cupboard to look out the coffee first of all. She wasn't exactly a late riser, she was up early most mornings to do work before the museum opened, but out here, the term 'up with the lark' had an entirely different and all too literal meaning. Her alarm was quite loud at home, Kendall knew she was a sound sleeper, and so she had slept right through the early morning bird calls. Putting on the kettle, she decided to check her phone for any messages. There were a few as it happened.

"Got new waitress, please don't make me interview again!" She smiled, reading Allison's message. She was glad that she found someone to help out, but she couldn't help having a little snigger at her expense. It was something of a rude awakening letting her have the 'joy' of interviewing job applicants. It was something Kendall had to endure a few times, and she knew it was sometimes very wearing.

"Tell Alessandra." That was all Koda had typed. She wasn't too surprised, she could always ask for the details later, but the finer points of texting had been lost on him. She had no such worries with Chase.

"You know where Koda is? Not in cave!" That was the extent of Chase's message. She was a little curious about this herself, but she didn't really have time to worry about it. She knew she was expecting a delivery and the chances were Chase just didn't want to deal with it himself.

"Chase driving me nuts, please tell me we have new guy and you're coming home!" Riley had typed. Kendall pulled the Energem out of her pocket and smiled. She knew how close Riley and Matt were, and while the thought of having him in Amber Beach was great for her, she had always imagined Riley's reaction when she told him his big brother was also a Ranger.

"Soon Riley." She responded, putting it away. "Hopefully soon."

Back in Amber Beach, Allison and Riley were taking their new recruit Leanne through the basics of opening the restaurant. She seemed genuinely excited and eager to start, something that Allison hadn't seen in a while.

"You are WAY too chipper for someone that's up for the pre-caffeine fix crowd." Allison commented, looking to Leanne. The new girl just smiled in response.

"Believe me, after the pixies that used to come into my old place, a few caffeine starved office workers will be nothing." Leanne assured her. Allison took her into the kitchen.

"Alright, so we need to put on the coffee machine to heat up and...son of a BITCH!" She grumbled, seeing a bunch of empty prep trays. "God damn it Brad, if I find out you were playing that stupid game again I'll break your bloody fingers!"

"Brad didn't do any of the prep work?" Riley asked. Allison just groaned.

"It doesn't look like it." Allison responded. "Alright, we'll have to do it before lunch; thank God I'm not on by myself..."

"I can do it." Leanne assured her. Allison just looked to her. "I mean...I used to do it in the last place all the time."

"I might just have to ask you to help." Allison told her. "Damn it, he didn't even change the till roll! I'll just go and get another one while I plan how I intend to murder Brad with his own I-phone!"

"Wow, she really doesn't like Brad much does she?" Leanne asked Riley.

"I think she just doesn't like having to continually pick up his slack." Riley commented. "I'm just surprised she hasn't kicked him straight in the poke balls yet."

Leanne just stared blankly at him.

"It's a game people play on their phones..."

"No, I know what Pokémon is; I just don't understand why it's such a thing here." Leanne told him. "When we have tiny magical creatures running around all over the place back home, I guess the appeal is kind of lost on most of us."

"I suppose that's a good point." Riley answered as Chase came into the cafe.

"Hey, have you guys seen Koda?" He asked. "I can't find him anywhere."

"I'm sure he's just around here somewhere." Riley responded. "You know he does live downstairs right?"

"First place I looked." Chase answered. "Look man, can you help me inventory the delivery?"

"Chase, we're kind of short-handed here." Riley reminded him. "Leanne just started..."

"Leanne, you worked in cafe's at home right?" Chase asked. Leanne just nodded. "Great, she'll be fine. Come on Riley."

Before he could protest, Chase yanked Riley out of the cafe, leaving Leanne alone. She just turned her attention to the prep work, and picked up a knife.

"Chase, why can't you just do the inventory yourself?" Riley asked him.

"Come on man, we always have two sets of eyes on everything." Chase told him. "You know, so we don't miss anything..."

"Like that you mean?" Riley asked as Koda walked in, looking a little dazed with a huge smile on his face. "Koda, where have you been?"

"Talk to Alessandra." He said in a dreamy kind of way.

"That...that was last night!" Riley commented. "So, can you help Chase with...?"

"Tired." Koda told them, walking past them. "Need lie down."

"I'll bet you do." Chase replied with a wry grin as he grabbed Riley. "Come on, inventory awaits."

Allison walked past them in the other direction, almost bumping into them, all the while grumbling about Brad and the fact she was now clearing up after him.

"Alright Leanne, sorry I left..." Allison started to say, before stopping suddenly. She could see that most of the prep trays were already full, and the chopping board was overflowing with chopped up vegetables. She just stood, open-mouthed.

"How...how did you...?"

"What? Is this too much?" Leanne asked her. Allison just shook her head.

"No, this should be good." She responded, beginning to load up the till roll. "Alright, that looks like the first customers. Hope you're ready."

"Trust me; it's like falling off a bike." Leanne assured her as the first customers started to approach the counter. "Welcome to the Dino Bite Cafe, how can I help you?"

Over in Millport, Matt headed back into the farmhouse, carrying his shotgun and a couple of ducks with him. He saw Kendall sitting by the table with a cup of coffee and came over, kissing her cheek.

"Wow, what's with the get-up?" He asked her.

"If I am going to this festival, I suppose it's as well I look the part." Kendall told him, indicating the clothing. "Your mom looked out some old clothes for me. She said something about the festival getting messy."

"Yeah, it can do that." Matt chuckled. "I guess you'd rather not get your suits messed up."

"You and your mom are aware I'm a palaeontologist by training right?" She asked, looking to him with a smile. "I do spend quite a bit of my time literally up to my knees in muddy fields. I'm not exactly the delicate little lab rat your mom thinks I am."

"Yeah, my mom seems to think anyone that doesn't have calluses on their calluses is a delicate little flower." Matt answered with a little laugh. "She's a farm girl, always has been."

"Well, maybe I can convince her I'm not exactly a soft city girl today." Kendall suggested. "So what kinds of things are there to do at this festival?"

"Ah, good, you're both here." Mrs Griffin said as she arrived in, dropping some eggs off at the counter. "Kendall, would you be a dear and put these away while we get showered and changed?"

"I think I can manage that." Kendall replied as they headed to get changed.

Over in Ocean Bluff, Koda was in his cave, resting up after his night. He was still smiling, unable to believe how it all went. He always knew that if he wanted his relationship with Alessandra to continue, then eventually he would have to tell her everything, but he always dreaded doing so as well. He was terrified what would happen when he did tell her the truth of what he was. He loved her, and it terrified him to think of what he would do if she had decided she couldn't deal with the fact her boyfriend was born before the Ice Age.

She never did make an issue of it though. When she heard, she was curious, and she had questions, but beyond anything else, she was happy to finally hear the truth from him. She loved him so much that she didn't see a cave man that still got confused by how the toaster worked; all she saw was the man that she loved.

"I thought you might just need a little something to eat." Chase said, interrupting Koda's thoughts as he lay on his "bed", a simple flat rock covered over with furs. The Black Ranger put down a tray, carrying a truly monstrous burger, one of a size even Koda had never seen.

"Is that...Double Bronto...with bacon?" Koda asked. Chase gave him a little smile.

"Well you have to keep your strength up my man." Chase answered, sitting with him. Koda just glared at him, forcing Chase to hold his hands up defensively. "Dude, no disrespect meant, I'm totally stoked for you."

Koda didn't answer, but since Chase didn't find himself on a one-way flight into the nearest wall, he presumed that he was at least happy enough with what Chase said to not be looking at murdering him. At least not until he finished with his burger. Koda started looking at how exactly he was meant to fit the whole thing into his mouth to take a bite.

"Look, I know I joke around, but I'm serious man. What you two have is a beautiful thing." Chase assured him. "If anything...I guess I'm kind of jealous."

Koda looked to him, his mouth already full. He didn't know exactly what Chase meant by that. He knew enough about relationships to know where they generally ended up. He had seen many members of his tribe starting families.

"You've got a good one there man; I couldn't be more made up for you." Chase assured him. "I just wanted you to know that."

"Thank you." Koda replied. Chase just smiled.

"So, things are going really well for you then." He continued. "You have that show coming up; Alessandra has that big match..."

Koda stopped eating. Chase couldn't help noticing that. It was usually a bad sign.

"What, did I just say...?"

"Alessandra...maybe no wrestle." Koda told him. Chase furrowed his brows.

"What, is she hurt again?" He asked. "I thought that girl she was up against was good..."

"Vinnie pull off mask." Koda told him, starting to become a little more noticeably agitated. "Want hurt Vinnie!"

"Well, you'll get a chance soon enough." Chase told him. "But...what's the big deal? Can't she just...put it on again?"

"Mask very important, very special." Koda explained to him. "Once lose mask, she no can wear again."

Chase didn't claim to know anything much about wrestling, but he knew that Alessandra had told the Rangers when they met her not to tell anyone she was El Jaguar. He had to stop himself from laughing at the irony of her being concerned about a secret identity around literal superheroes. He did know though that it was an important part of her character. Almost all her merchandise featured her mask as part of the design.

"She really can't wear it again?" Chase asked him. Koda just nodded.

"Tradition very important to her." He replied.

"So, why does she need it?" Chase asked him. "Dude, you and me, we both know better than anyone, the mask is a great thing. Sure, ours come with a few more fringe benefits and some real superpowers, but the thing is, the mask doesn't make us what we are. All the stuff she can do in that ring...none of that is down to the mask."

"She just sad." Koda continued. "She use El Jaguar gimmick long time. Not know what she do now."

"Well, she managed to make the El Jaguar character." Chase said as he thought about it. "Maybe she can make another character...something new. Like...when the Megaforce guys became the Corsairs."

"New character?" Koda asked him. Chase nodded in response.

"I'm sure a lot of guys have had careers once the masks went." Chase told him. "She just needs to find a new face that works. And since hers is pretty amazing, what's to stop her next mask being her?"

Koda knew what Chase was getting at, but he was also aware of the need for colour and showmanship in a gimmick for the crowd to take notice. Something on the wall caught Koda's eye, and he broke into a massive smile. He got up, grabbing his cell phone.

"Alessandra...meet me at gym!" He rushed out. "Trust me, come to gym!"

Chase just looked completely confused.

"Dude, what's happening?" He asked. Koda started grabbing stuff from his cave and shoving them into a bag. He looked to Chase with a smile.

"Sometimes, you have good ideas!" Koda told him, before running out. Chase just sat, trying to figure out if that was a compliment or an insult, when he saw the burger left behind.

"Koda running out on a burger?" He asked, picking it up and shrugging, starting to take a bite. "That must be important."

Meanwhile, upstairs, Koda ran out of the door, narrowly missing Leanne as he went. She spun around with surprising dexterity, not spilling a single drop of the tray of drinks she was taking to the table. She started to hand out the drinks.

"Sorry about that, enjoy your drinks." She said as she left the table, picking up a ketchup bottle from a table and dropping it on another just as the guy was looking around. "You're welcome."

She got to the counter, where Allison was overjoyed with how smoothly the shift was running. Leanne was a tremendous waitress. She seemed to anticipate what customers needed before they said anything, she was extremely quick negotiating the tables, and she seemed to have an uncanny ability to appease any customer. So far, she hadn't heard so much as a single raised voice or even a disapproving grunt.

"Leanne, where have you been all my life?" Allison asked her, looking out over a dining room full of happy customers.

"Oh, it's nothing really." She responded.

"Really, you should teach some of my other guys a thing or two." Allison told her. Leanne covered her mouth with her hand as she laughed a little, beginning to blush.

"Stop, it's nothing." She assured her.

"Seriously, nothing's been broken, no one's screaming, I haven't given out a single comp...you're just amazing!" Allison gushed, looking to the clock. "Listen, can you hang on for a couple of minutes? I just have something I need to deal with real quick."

"Sure, I'll be right here." Leanne assured her. Allison left the restaurant, heading through the back, stopping only by the clocking in machine. She checked, finding her suspicion confirmed. She went out the back, into the trash disposal area. There, she heard someone crashing around. She smiled as she heard a voice swearing loudly.

"Shit, where is it?" Brad yelled loudly as he tossed around some trash bags. "Oh come on, where is it?"

He managed to get to the bottom of the pile, and grumbled.

"Just a stupid lure." He muttered, before finding something else. It was an envelope addressed to him. He tore it off, staring at it confused. "What the hell?"

"That...that would be a written warning." Allison announced. "One I knew you'd only find if you were out looking for that lure I put out when your shift started...twenty minutes ago!"

"You're writing me up?" He snapped. Allison just nodded her head, before pointing in the door.

"Do remember to wash your hands before you get to the counter." She told him. As Brad stomped past her, clearly put out, Allison just smiled and kissed her I-Phone.

"Best money I ever spent." She commented as she went back inside.

 **A/N:** OK folks, this is kind of a good news/bad news situation. The good news is that on Monday, Dino Supercharge will be starting to air in the UK. Finally able to get all that material will allow me to progress some more with the stories which I'm sure we're all happy to hear.

The bad news is, since this has happened with Super Megaforce, Dino Charge and now Dino Supercharge, it looks as though it'll probably be September NEXT year before they start airing Ninja Steel over here, which will inevitably cause delays in me getting material for that. So, fair warning, don't be surprised if Ninja Steel is delayed significantly.

Thanks for your continued support and reviews.


	5. A New Image

Kendall, Matt and Mrs Griffin arrived in town a little after midday. She was a little surprised to find that Mrs Griffin was bringing a selection of pies with her, thinking that food would be provided. However, she quickly understood when she got to the town. It wasn't like a carnival came into town bringing workers with it; the locals put on the festival themselves, which meant everyone brought something to the table. The tavern was providing the drink, the more musically inclined townspeople were providing the music, and pretty much everyone provided some of the food.

It was a lively affair, and it seemed like Millport's version of the New York Thanksgiving Parade. Everyone had done the work early, getting it out of the way so that they could all participate. Kendall had travelled a lot, and had seen many local street fairs and celebrations. She had to admit that she was more comfortable and better accustomed to black tie events held in museums or university meeting halls than street parties, but seeing the way Matt's face lit up reminded her of the year she had gotten her first microscope from her aunt for Christmas. She had a feeling that the only thing stopping him rushing straight in the second he arrived was the massive stack of pies that his mother had him carrying. It made her heart swell to see the twinkle in his eye. It was adorable to her to see that side of him.

"The refreshments table is just over there." She told them, taking their wares over to where the collection of food was starting to grow. She could see Matt starting to get restless. "Now Matt, calm down will you?"

"But they're signing up for the events already!" He told her with a little bit of a whine in his voice that was more than a little cute. Kendall was barely able to stop herself laughing.

"Now Matt, you know as well as I do there are always enough spots for everyone that wants to sign up." Mrs Griffin assured him, looking to Kendall. "I swear, he's like this every year, but there aren't any limits on how many people can sign up, and I sincerely doubt they would exclude the defending champion anyway."

"Defending champion?" Kendall asked with a bright smile, looking to her boyfriend. "Defending champion in what exactly?"

"He holds the current record in the bronco." Mrs Griffin told Kendall proudly. "Not to mention roping.

"I might have to see a demonstration of that some time." Kendall suggested.

"I'm sure you'll get plenty of chances." Matt told her, gesturing to where a young woman was signing up people for the games for the day. "There's the bronco, shooting, roping, barrel rolling...I tend to avoid the pie-eating contest though, the Fisher Boys pretty much have that sewn up."

"Matt! Good to see you!" A young woman called out, coming to his side. She had long, auburn hair, and was wearing a denim shirt and jeans. She threw her arms around him, completely disregarding Kendall who was standing right next to him. Kendall felt herself tensing up seeing this greeting.

"Isla, good to see you too." Matt responded, trying to keep his arms spread out as she held him, but he could see from her expression that Kendall was not happy. "Um...this is my girlfriend, Kendall."

"Charmed I'm sure." Isla said in an off-hand way, not even looking at Kendall. "So, is it just the usual for you? Or would you maybe like to join me in something?"

"I think I'll be good with the usual." He told her.

"So, what other events are available?" Kendall asked. They both looked to her, and let out a little laugh. The fact Isla laughed enraged her.

"No offence Kendra..."

"Ms. Morgan!" Kendall corrected her. Isla just smiled.

"Well, there's nothing here that's really for delicate city slickers." She told her. "Why don't you find a good seat and enjoy the show?"

Kendall just brushed past her, heading for the tables. She didn't really want to participate in any of the games, but Isla had just rubbed her the wrong way, and she really wanted to show her that she was anything but a delicate city girl.

The only issue was that now she had made it clear she was signing up, she didn't know what to sign up FOR. She had never ridden a horse, so the bronco was going to be at best a nonsensical choice, at worst, suicidal! She was a decent shot, but it had been a long time since she had fired anything other than a Dino Blaster to test them, and wasn't confident that she could get used to the recoil in time to put on a decent showing. She saw one table where the line wasn't particularly long, and decided just to go for that. She quickly got to the front of the queue, but as she was signing up, Mrs Griffin came over.

"Uh...Kendall...are you sure you know what you're signing up for?" She asked her. Kendall just looked to her, and then to Matt. She just nodded her head.

"Absolutely." She responded confidently. She was handed a number.

"Well, you just head over there when your number is called." The guy behind the table told her. "God help you!"

As Kendall walked away, the number clutched in her hand, she could only wonder if perhaps this wasn't one of her better ideas.

Over at the gym, Carl was overseeing the wrestlers and trainees all working towards their goals. Knowing that there was a show coming up, all the trainees knew that there was an outside chance that if the card needed to be padded out in a few places, then anyone that caught Carl's eye could be asked to fill in. While most of them were going to be working ring crew and security, all of them were hopeful for the chance to get their first taste of the business in front of a live crowd.

"For the love of God Mick, you work the left!" Carl yelled at one of the guys as he caused his opponent to stumble by grabbing and wrenching him the wrong way. He started to twist another way. "NO, don't GO left, WORK the left! The left arm! NO HIS OTHER LEFT! FOR FUCK'S SAKE! Jack! For the love of all that's holy teach this tosser his left from his right!"

Jack went over to take over from the guy he was working with. Carl looked around as he saw Alessandra coming in. He was a little surprised to see her. He knew that she was still upset over the mask incident, and he was worried that she was going to pull out of the show at the last minute. He knew he would be able to get someone else to wrestle Ricochet, most of the guys on his roster would give anything for that opportunity, but he was hoping that she would come back.

"Alessandra, I'm surprised...um...are you alright?" He asked her. "I wasn't expecting you...are you here to train?"

"I not know." She told him uneasily. "Koda ask me to come."

"Look, I know it's a bit soon to talk about this, but...I don't know how many people would have seen your face." He suggested. "We might get away with it if you just..."

"No, I know I lose mask." She told him. Although she was upset about losing that part of her gimmick, her sense of tradition was greater. Besides, in this day and age where virtually everyone could upload images and video to the internet instantaneously, it was unlikely that no one had already revealed her face to the whole world.

Just then, Koda came into the gym, carrying a large bag with him. He quickly scanned the room, finding Carl and Alessandra and made his way over with a bounding pace straight through the room. He rushed straight past Jack, who was applying an armbar to his trainee a little too enthusiastically just to make a point.

"And THAT is the left arm!" Jack told the trainee, who could only grunt as his face was being crushed between Jack's knee and the floor. "Hey kid! You here to talk about how we're going to fuck up Eddie for that shit he pulled the other night?"

"Later." Koda told him, getting to Alessandra's side.

"Koda, what you want me here for?" She asked him.

"I'd like to know the same thing." Carl added as he looked confused. Koda just smiled, fetching a chair and unfolding it, setting it down. He took Alessandra by the arm, gesturing to the chair.

"Sit." He told her, going to get another chair and setting it up next to her. She looked confused, but did as she was told.

"Koda, what you want?" Alessandra asked him. He put his bag down on the ground, and he looked to her.

"Eddie take your mask, he not take your talent." Koda told her.

"Well I could have told you that." Carl responded. "The problem is the fact he stole her gimmick only days away from the biggest match of her career!"

"You trust me?" Koda asked her. Alessandra nodded without question. She would trust Koda with her life. He started to unpack his bag onto the chair next to her. It was a series of pots and containers, arranging them. He carefully selected one of the pots, opening it up to reveal a coloured fluid inside. They were the pigments and dyes he mixed to create the paintings that lined the walls of his cave. He dipped his fingers into the pot, before looking to her.

"Hold still." He told her. "This be messy."

Back in Millport, Kendall ran for all she was worth, her feet slipping around as she was trying to gain traction, facing off against her opponent. The beast darted off to the left, trying to get around her, but she anticipated its movements, and with a huge leap, managed to wrap her arms around it, bearing it to the ground. There was a squelch from the mud and a huge squeal, but she kept her grip. A bell rang to indicate her victory.

"YES!" Matt called out as he leapt over the fence into the pen, where Kendall was starting to get back to her feet, holding a squirming, squealing pig in her arms. She handed the pig off to one of the judges as Matt scooped her up in his arms, spinning her around in excitement.

"I'm going to take that as meaning I did well then." Kendall giggled as he put her down.

"Well?" He asked her. "You only went and set a new record! That was amazing! Where did you learn to do that?"

"You should have seen the problems we had getting Koda to take a bath at first." Kendall chuckled, noticing the way that Isla in the background seemed to be more than a little put out. She was already happy that Matt seemed impressed, but she'd have been lying if she said she didn't get a little bit of satisfaction out of seeing Isla having to swallow her words about her. "In his time most of the rivers were almost frozen. He changed his mind when he realised we had hot water."

"Well if I ever need a hand rounding up the pigs, I guess I know who to ask." He responded, putting his arm around her. Kendall just pulled into him as he held her, smiling as much at the ridiculous idea of her running around on a farm after pigs as the fact that she had Matt's arm around her. "So, do you have a while before the bronco?"

"I do." He told her. "But...I don't think we'll get much chance to be alone."

"Really?" Kendall asked. "Why?"

"You just set a record!" He reminded her, pointing. "You have to deal with your fan club."

Kendall only just turned away from Matt before a swarm of kids rushed her, cheering and clamouring to be near her. She was already covered in mud from the pig pen, but as the town's children all swarmed around their new hero, reaching out to her, she couldn't help being acutely aware of their sticky fingers, and the faces covered in a variety of jams and sugar from the various treats on offer. She pulled her hands up out of the way, keeping the contact to a minimum, perhaps patting the occasional head that didn't look too unclean as she entertained her fans.

Matt watched on with a huge smile on his face as his mother came over.

"It seems the kids are all rather taken with Kendall." She told him. Matt just continued to smile, seeing the woman he loved surrounded by the town's kids.

"They aren't the only ones." He answered.

Back in the gym, Koda had been working for some time on Alessandra. She had her eyes closed as he ran his fingers over his flesh, painting on the design he had come up with in his mind. As he finally completed his work, he moved back a little to take it in with a smile.

His people had on occasion used dyes and pigments made from the local plant life not only to decorate their caves, but also themselves. In particular the hunters had used such practices in order to replicate the way the animals they hunted would be able to hide in the foliage and among the rocks. He was also inspired by his adventures as a Ranger, seeing the bizarre appearances of the monsters they faced, and how they were sometimes frightening. The thought occurred to him, the Luchadors masks dated back to battle masks worn to frighten their enemies...why then would body paint not work the same way?

It was not uncommon for wrestlers to use body paints in their gimmicks, much like Koda's tribe back in his day. He ensured he was happy with the result before he wiped off his fingers on a rag.

"Open eyes." Koda told her, holding up a mirror. Alessandra looked to her new appearance, while Carl and Jack looked on, uncertain what to make of it. Koda didn't really notice them though; all he could concern himself with was Alessandra, waiting to hear what she had to say.

She didn't say anything for a time, which frightened Koda a little. She shifted a little in her chair to get a few different views of his design.

"That's your idea?" Jack asked aloud, unable to disguise the scepticism in his voice. However, Carl was giving it a little bit more thought. He stroked his chin for a moment as he tried to think.

"Wait...I think this could work." Carl said as he considered it for a moment. "It's a distinctive pattern. It could work on a t-shirt or a poster...I can see it already!"

"But the paint, doesn't it seem kind of..."

"What about Prince Devitt?" He asked Jack, cutting him off. "When you wrestled him you said he was one of the best. In fact, I think I might still have the number of that girl that provided the oil-based stuff he used that doesn't smudge as much."

Koda just held his hand up to cut them off though. He appreciated that Carl was behind the idea and offering suggestions, but for him, all that mattered was if Alessandra was happy with it. He looked into her eyes.

"You no like?" He asked her. Alessandra just smiled.

"I love." She answered, before looking to Carl. "But if I have new face, I need new name."

"Chris Benoit, he used to wrestle as the Pegasus Kid, but when he lost the mask, he acted more aggressive." He suggested, looking to her. "He used the name The Wild Pegasus, to indicate that losing the mask was like unleashing him. Maybe we can work that into the character?"

"I have idea." Alessandra told him, leaning in closer. "I call myself..."


	6. Kendall's Candidate

Phillipe was in his gym, working hard on his training regime. He didn't know why Sledge and his crew had been so uncharacteristically quiet as of late. In fact...they had been quiet for a good while now. When the Rangers went to New Zealand, he had been left in Amber Beach as the sole Ranger charged with keeping the city safe. While he was nervous about the prospect of dealing with all that danger himself, he was also kind of a little disappointed that he hadn't had more of a chance to get out into the action. So far, since he had gotten the Graphite Energem, he had only had the call to action on two occasions.

"Phillipe!" Margaret called out as she came into the room. Phillipe stopped his work against the heavy bag, turning to face her.

"Margaret!" He responded, picking up a towel and beginning to mop himself down. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"You asked me to bring any business to your attention." Margaret reminded him as she came wandered over, picking up a water bottle as she went. She threw it to him, before getting her palm pilot out, calling it up. "The Mayor would like you to dedicate a new hospital wing. The ribbon cutting is on Monday at 10 AM..."

"Put it on the schedule." Phillipe told her.

"But that would clash with your trade association meeting..."

"They'll re-schedule." Phillipe assured her. "Book the French restaurant the chairman likes for lunch that day."

"But they want to discuss private..."

"I meant book the restaurant." Phillipe clarified. He was learning a lot about politics in his new role as an ambassador. While he knew he was going to one day rule all of Zandar, he and his father had very different ideas how to do so. His father had a very insular view, and concerned himself only with the interior of the nation, and so he had never really bothered to learn much about international politics. Phillipe knew he would have to learn, but he was quickly figuring out that balancing the wants and egos of several dignitaries was a full-time job. To Phillipe, a hospital was more important than a business meeting, he just hoped bribing the chairman with his favourite restaurant would convince him to agree. "So what else is on the agenda?"

"We have a few more sightings." She told him, handing him an envelope. He looked to the photographs inside. This was something of a side-project he was working on. He had certain resources that the others didn't have, and was trying to find any potential sightings of Neil Nevarro. "I'm afraid there's nothing of any real use though, just the usual blurry and inconclusive shots."

"This man doesn't look much like a 40-year-old to me." Phillipe commented, handing the photographs back to her.

"There's also a small thing...Mr Watkins is in the lobby." She told him. Phillipe almost spat out the water he was drinking as he heard this. While he had recently done a deal with Mr Watkins for the export of his ice cream bars to Zandar, he wasn't really sure why he would come to see him unannounced.

"He is?" Phillipe asked. "What does he want?"

"He wouldn't say, but he did indicate that he wants to see you quite urgently." She told him. "He was most insistent."

"Really...well...I suppose I should probably see what he wants." Phillipe responded. As he was heading out the door, Margaret just coughed to attract his attention.

"You should probably shower and change." She told him. He looked down at his sweaty clothing and smiled.

"That would probably be a good idea." He agreed, pulling off his shirt and heading to his room. As he left, Margaret just shook her head.

"God, I wish he would stop doing that." She remarked to herself, before trying to get back to concentrating on her other duties.

Over in Millport, enough time had passed that the mud on Kendall's clothes had dried up enough that she was able to dust the worst of it off. Mrs Griffin had offered to take her back to the farm to wash up and get changed, but since none of the other residents were missing any of the party, Kendall was willing to just make do. Most of the camps she had been in at dig sites were hardly salubrious, and it wasn't the first time she, along with members of her team had spent days at a time in the same clothing with little access to hot water.

The celebration was well under way, and now that the majority of the food was long since gone and the games were over, the guests were starting to enjoy the music and the drink, beginning to partake of the dancing. Matt limped over to Kendall, taking a seat with her and handing her a beer.

"Are you alright?" Kendall asked him, gesturing to a bunch of kids that had crowded around him after his run on the bronco. "I hope your fan club wasn't too rough with you." Matt just chuckled.

"Retaining my championship helps ease the pain a little." He said as he came closer. "Though I can think of something else that might just help."

"I think I might know as well." She replied, pulling in closer and kissing him softly. As they sat with each other, Kendall looked around and noticed that for the first time all day, no one else was paying any attention to them. The band was playing, and just about everyone was up dancing. Kendall looked to Matt and gestured aside. "Matt, can we go somewhere a little quieter?"

"Really?" He asked her, his eyebrow raising a little. "What did you have in mind?"

"Just come with me will you?" She asked him. She got up and started to make her way towards the general store. Matt followed her around the back, which was remarkably quiet all things considered. Kendall took one last look around to make sure no one was around.

"So, you wanted to talk about something, I guess now we have some time alone." He remarked. Kendall just nodded in response.

"Matt, I don't know if Riley told you, but recently they went to New Zealand." She started to tell him. Matt didn't say anything, instead just letting her tell him what she had to say. She reached into her pocket, pulling something out. "While they were there, they found out that the Purple Energem had been discovered and bonded."

"It was kind of hard to miss the news reports." Matt told her. "So you have a new Ranger?"

"Not exactly." Kendall told him. "Albert, the man the Energem bonded to...he decided he didn't want to leave New Zealand."

"He can do that?" Matt asked her. "I thought that the guys didn't get much of a choice in the matter."

"It was news to me too, but according to Keeper because he really wanted to stay, the bond was weakened enough that he could use his own power to sever the bond." Kendall told him. "Unfortunately, that means that we have the Energem and the Zord...we just no longer have a Purple Ranger."

She opened her hand, showing him the Purple Energem.

"The Energem is in kind of a limbo state. Since its previous owner isn't dead, it doesn't reject anyone, that makes it really dangerous since anyone can handle it." Kendall told him. "So, we need someone else. We need someone heroic for it to bond to. We need a new Purple Ranger."

Matt stared at her for a moment, before he realised what she was getting at. He just pointed to himself.

"Me?" He asked. "You want me to become the Purple Ranger?"

"Matt, think about it, you're perfect for the role!" She told him. "You are the most selfless person I know. You are heroic to a fault...you ran into a burning building for God's sake! You already know about us..."

"Kendall, are you really sure?" He asked her. Kendall presented the Energem to him.

"Please, take this." She told him. "I can't think of anyone else that's better suited."

Matt took a deep breath, reaching out and taking the Energem from her. Kendall waited with baited breath, a huge smile on her face, but it quickly faded when she realised that something was wrong. Nothing happened. Nothing at all. He just stood there, holding the Energem like it was a meaningless pebble.

"I don't understand." Kendall said, looking to the Energem. "Are you having visions? Feeling energy...anything?"

"Not really." Matt responded. "If anything this thing feels a little colder than I expected."

Kendall took the Energem from him and started to inspect it.

"I don't understand, maybe it's damaged or something." Kendall said, trying to find any signs of damage. "I don't understand. Why isn't it bonding to you?"

"You said that the Energems don't just look for heroism, that they take other things into account like why someone would want the power. That's why the graphite Energem bond to Phillipe right?"

"It wouldn't bond to him because his motives were selfish." Kendall responded. "It only changed its mind when he proved he was selfless by saving Chloe."

"Well, you also said Albert's connection to the Energem was weakened because he didn't want to be a Ranger anymore." Matt said, taking a seat on a crate. He took a deep breath as he broached the next question. "What if the person never wanted to be a Ranger in the first place?"

"Matt, I don't think most of the guys wanted to be Rangers..."

"Kendall, you're not listening to me." He interrupted her. "I REALLY don't want to be a Ranger."

Kendall just stood, staring at him wordlessly, unable to believe what she had just heard.

Back at the Embassy, Phillipe came into the main hall, finding Mr Watkins waiting patiently for him.

"Mr Watkins, this is a pleasant surprise." Phillipe said as he approached him, shaking his hand. He gestured to his hair, which was still damp from the shower. "Sorry about this, you did catch me unexpectedly in the middle of a workout."

"Sorry, I think my workout days are well and truly behind me." Mr Watkins replied.

"Come in to the parlour." Phillipe invited him, gesturing him inside. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure? Is there some issue with your first delivery?"

"Actually production has been going better than ever. I'm afraid this is more of a private matter I wanted to talk to you about." Mr Watkins continued as Phillipe poured them both a drink from his bar.

"Oh, well...now you have me intrigued." Phillipe responded. "What can I help you with?"

"It came to my attention as a result of a recent discussion with my daughter that you two know each other." Mr Watkins responded. "Shelby?"

"Oh, yes, Shelby. I met her through my donation to the local museum." Phillipe said, carefully trying to be as sparing with the details as he could be. "She's a remarkable girl."

"She's a little more headstrong than I'd like, but between me and her mother that isn't really much of a surprise." Mr Watkins answered.

"So, I'm afraid you have me at a loss." Phillipe responded. "What exactly would you like me to do?"

"Her current path, this palaeontology thing, I understand she likes it, but I just don't see a future in it." He told him honestly. "I wanted to give it a fair chance, but she's been working so hard there and yet...I just don't see any tangible progression."

"I'm afraid I still don't understand." Phillipe replied. Mr Watkins took a deep breath.

"I'd like you to talk to her, to try and convince her that this path she's on isn't going anywhere." Mr Watkins told him. "You know her; she's closer to your age. She might listen to you. Can you talk to her?"

"I...think I might need something a little stronger." Phillipe responded, putting down his wine and picking up a decanter. "Lagavulin?"

"I've never been much of a Scotch man myself." Mr Watkins responded. "But if you have any more of that Cognac, I wouldn't say no."

Phillipe turned back to the bar and poured the drinks.

Back in Millport, Kendall and Matt were still sitting quietly. Kendall could not believe what she had heard from Matt.

"Matt...what do you mean you don't want to be a Ranger?" Kendall asked him. "Don't you realise what I'm offering you?"

"Kendall, what you guys do is amazing. I can't say anything else!" He told her as he struggled to explain what he meant. "Riley, he's always loved all that adventure and stuff. It would have been naive to think that he'd want to stay in Millport. But...my life is here."

"Matt, I understand you don't want to go. I know you feel like you have to be here and help your mom, but Anton will be only too happy to hire people to help her!" Kendall responded. "You're the local hero, but you could be a hero to the whole world! Matt, you don't have to be trapped here!"

"Trapped? TRAPPED?" Matt answered, suddenly looking decidedly angry with her. "Is that what you think?"

"Matt, I know you want to help your mom, but you don't have to live your life..."

"Kendall, don't you think I know I don't have to stay?" Matt asked her. "I'm a grown man Kendall! If I wanted to leave, there's not a damn thing anyone could do to stop me!"

"But...why...?"

"Kendall, I don't stay here because I feel trapped. I stay here because I want to stay here!" Matt told her. "I like it here! I like the fact that I know everyone here! I like the fact that when I go to the store tomorrow to get the paper I can take the Tupperware mom borrowed from Mrs Milne because she's worked the same shift every week for the last 20 years!"

He looked to her as he tried to settle down. While he knew she didn't mean to insult him or his home town.

"I want to take over the farm some day. I want to stay here." Matt told her. "My whole life is here, I'd like to raise my kids here..."

"Kids?" Kendall asked with a shudder. Matt couldn't help noticing this.

"You...don't want kids?"

"Matt, I've never wanted kids! They keep getting into everything, they need constant attention." She told him. "I want to advance my career. I want to make new discoveries, I want to develop new techniques, maybe even get to name something some day. I'm not going to be running a museum forever, I can't do any of that without travelling and I definitely can't do that while I'm dragging a couple of kids along for the ride."

She looked to him, seeing the look on his face as she finished what she had said. She wasn't much of a people person, but she couldn't mistake the disappointment in his face. She felt her chest tightening as she realised what had happened themselves.

"These...these are some pretty big issues aren't they?" She asked him.

"I...guess they are." Matt replied quietly. They had been together some time now, but in that time they hadn't had as much time together as they would have liked. The times they had spent together they hadn't talked out a lot about what they wanted from life. Some tears stared to form up in Kendall's eyes.

"We...we have an expiration date, don't we?" She asked him. Matt was about to say something when Mrs Griffin came around the corner.

"There you both are!" She declared out loud. "Come on! You've been elected harvest king and queen! You have to dance!"

She left to get back to the party, leaving Matt and Kendall alone. Kendall looked to Matt as she came closer.

"So, what do we do now?" She asked. Matt stroked away some of her tears as he struggled to keep in his own.

"For now...I guess we dance."


	7. The Way Back

Phillipe sat on one of the large, ornate leather lounge chairs, nursing his drink while he considered what Mr Watkins had asked him to do. Mr Watkins was sitting opposite him, looking at him with a considered gaze as he awaited some kind of response from the young prince. While he was still new to the political arena, he had already stood before some intimidating people. However, this just felt like a whole different level of awkward.

"So Your Highness, do you think you can help?" Mr Watkins asked. Phillipe took a deep breath as he put his drink down on a table.

"I'm not really sure what you think I can do." Phillipe responded.

"You are an exceptional role model for people your age." Mr Watkins complimented him as he looked to Phillipe. "You're educated, you're driven. You have accomplished more in 25 years than many people do their whole lives."

"I didn't do all of that by myself..."

"I'm aware that you had certain opportunities, but I like to think opportunity is like a cart without a horse. If no one puts in the effort to take it, it just sits there rotting." Mr Watkins continued. "I have met men twice your age who aren't as skilled in negotiation and deal-making as you are. It's little wonder you're taken seriously as an ambassador."

"I'm afraid you give me too much credit where that is concerned." Phillipe responded. "I've already been to meetings where people confused me for a seat-filler."

"I just want what's best for Shelby." Mr Watkins told him. "I'm not going to be around forever, and when that time comes, I just want to be sure she's going to be taken care of."

"If there's anything I would never doubt about your daughter it's her ability to take care of herself." Phillipe answered him with a little smile. Mr Watkins returned the gesture.

"I've got a number of opportunities that could set her up for life." Mr Watkins told him. "I've already got a place for her at the business school I graduated from. I'm on good terms with the lecturers; I have some standing with the board. I have a job just waiting for her with room for advancement, and yes...one day when I'm looking at retirement, she could even take the company."

"It sounds like you have a lot to offer..."

"I know she loves all this dinosaur nonsense, but...they've been there for millions of years. They'll be there in a few years." He pressed on. "I'm not saying she can't study this if she wishes. I myself am getting acquainted with the Greek Classics through the local college. When she's financially set, she can study whatever she likes as much as she likes."

"Mr Watkins, I appreciate that you're doing what you believe is best for your daughter." Phillipe responded as he took another sip. "However, I don't really feel comfortable trying to talk her into doing something I'm not sure she wants to do."

"But your father..."

"Mr Watkins...a lot of what I've done is in spite of my father...no offence intended." Phillipe replied as he gestured around. "This Embassy, my position here, my charity work...I did a lot of that despite my father's insistence on Zandar remaining a stand-alone nation."

"But you're going to take over from him one day." Mr Watkins reminded him.

"And in the meantime I'm living approximately 6,000 miles away to get away from the man so I can actually do things on my own." Phillipe responded. "Believe me, I love my father, but I'm speaking from experience. The last thing you want to do is risk driving your daughter away."

Mr Watkins finished his drink and got up from his chair. He offered Phillipe a hand.

"I appreciate your advice Your Highness." Mr Watkins told him. "But I think this is one matter we'll have to agree to disagree on. Perhaps if you have your own children some day, you'll understand."

"Enjoy the rest of your day Mr Watkins." Phillipe responded, before gesturing to the door. "Would you like a ride home?"

"That's perfectly fine, I'll get a cab." Mr Watkins answered. As he left, Margaret came back into the room. She could see that whatever they had been discussing, it had not been a comfortable conversation. It wasn't hard to see that neither man was happy with the outcome.

"Good meeting?" Margaret asked him. Phillipe shook his head.

"It wasn't exactly business." Phillipe told her. "Mr Watkins wanted me to convince Shelby to go to business school."

"He did?" She asked him. "Isn't that kind of...?"

"I wouldn't judge him too harshly. He means well." Phillipe interrupted her. "I just told him I wasn't sure it would be right to use my position as a friend to try and convince Shelby to do something against her wishes."

"Really?" She asked, smiling a little. He just nodded.

"It leaves me in something of a quandary. I'm not sure how I feel about talking about Shelby behind her back." He continued. "But...I don't know how she'll feel if I tell her about our little conversation."

"I'm not so sure she needs to know." Margaret suggested. "I doubt she'll exactly thank you for telling her that her dad is trying to get his business associates to convince her to give up her dream."

"I suppose you have a point." He said with a sigh. "I just couldn't bring myself to encourage anyone to stop pursuing their passion."

Margaret moved a little closer, putting her arm around him, beginning to stroke his shoulders. It was only when he turned and looked at her that she realised what she was doing. Bringing her arm back, she averted his gaze.

"So...um..." She started to stammer. "Jelly donuts and coffee? You can look out that Animaniacs DVD."

"Margaret, sometimes I think there's no one in this world that knows me like you do." He responded, kissing her cheek gently. "I'll meet you in my room when you get back."

As he left the room, Margaret turned to the wall, gently banging her forehead against it.

"Margaret, why the hell do you keep doing this to yourself?" She asked, before gathering her things and heading for the door.

Up on Sledge's ship, Fury and Sledge made their way towards Wrench's lab. It had been a few days since Sledge had given Wrench the sample he needed for his latest run with the re-animator. They were used to screams and anguished cries, but as they got closer, there was a spine-chilling scream that almost seemed to shake the ship. They arrived at Wrench's lab, finding him working on one of his many machines. He turned a dial, eliciting yet another scream so agonising that Fury even seemed to react to it.

"How are things progressing?" Sledge asked him. Wrench gestured to some safety glass he had erected.

"See for yourself." Wrench answered. Sledge looked through the glass, seeing a human-looking creature secured to what looked a lot like a medical exam table or a dentist's chair by thick, heavy manacles that looked more like they were suited to restraining a wild bear than a person. The form on the table was quite small, slender, and appeared to be a young girl, though her head was completely encased in a steel helmet, and her body was completely encased in a one-piece suit. The helmet had a series of wires coming from it, leading into Wrench's computer console. Several electrodes were attached to her bodysuit, many of them to track her vitals, but others were there to assist with the torture. The body on the table started thrashing again as Wrench adjusted some controls.

"She's alive, but how is the conditioning going?" Fury asked him.

"I've been running the programme for a couple of days now." Wrench explained to them. "Fortunately her sensory deprivation helmet was still functioning after last time. You should have seen her reaction when she saw it, she was terrified. I think there might be a component of DNA memory in the clones. It's really quite fascinating..."

Sledge cut him off with a huge roar, letting Wrench know that he was tired of his scientific fascination with the art of torture and the characteristics of the clones. He trembled under Sledge's gaze, but got the message to get to the point.

"Under the helmet, and in that suit, she cannot experience any form of sensory stimuli...except for what I feed into it through the console." He told them. "The average mind can only take total sensory isolation for a couple of hours. After a day or subject is so grateful for any form of stimulus, they become very susceptible to suggestion. All I need to do is periodically pipe some 'educational' footage into the helmet."

They all looked to the screen to see what he was feeding her in short bursts. It was footage of the Rangers in their battles, but it was very heavily edited. The footage didn't show anything about monsters attacking the city, or of them harming people, it was a constant loop of the Rangers destroying monsters, again and again. Every brutal take-down, every single time they had destroyed one of the monsters had been destroyed. Some of them even showed monsters begging in vain for mercy as the Rangers, at least in the context of the edited footage, mercilessly vaporised them.

"By the time I'm finished with her, she'll be completely helpless to do anything other than what you order her to do." Wrench told him.

"But she is all but useless without her powers." Sledge reminded him. "I like seeing a good torture session as much as the next man, but have you managed to repair it?"

"Well...that was a little more difficult." Wrench told them, taking them over to another machine. "I managed to put her crystal back together, but magic really isn't my strong suit. I've managed to get some of her power back, but it's nothing like as strong as before."

"Fury, when was the last time we checked the crushing power on the garbage compactor?" Sledge asked. Wrench started to back up quickly, realising that Sledge was losing patience again.

"I've managed to return some of her power, but...it only works if people...write it down." Wrench explained. Sledge grabbed his blaster and trained it on Wrench.

"If they write it down?" He asked. "YOU EXPECT US TO GET THE RANGERS TO WRITE DOWN...?"

"I think I might just have an idea." Poisandra said as she emerged from her hiding place, where she and Curio had been eavesdropping after stumbling on this meeting during a spirited game of hide-and-seek...something of a pointless endeavour since they were both on the same team and had neglected to get anyone else to play with them! "Though it would require us to borrow a few things from Wrench."

"What do you need my sweet?" He asked her. Poisandra went to a bench and picked up a bone-saw.

"They'll recognise her from last time." Poisandra told him. "Curio, it's time for a make-over!"

"YAY! Makeover!" Curio cheered as they started dancing around. Wrench took the bone-saw off her.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked, realising that if this plan was going to have any chance of working at all, then the last thing he needed was to let a raving lunatic like Poisandra run loose with surgical tools.

Down in Millport, the Harvest Festival was beginning to wind down, and Kendall and Matt had decided to return to the farm as the evening shifted towards those few who just didn't want to admit that the party was over and were hitting the tavern. They weren't really in the mood though, given what had happened.

Mrs Griffin had seen them heading out, and subtle as a sledgehammer, had decided that she really wanted to stay and continue the party. The whole walk home was a little awkward, and most of the way, they didn't even say a word to each other. Kendall had her arms wrapped around herself, and the wire crown from the 'coronation' was hanging from her fingers loosely. Matt's crown was wedged over the top of his cowboy hat. As they walked, he could feel the silence beginning to eat away at him. He looked up for some inspiration.

"Hey, the Big Dipper's kind of low tonight." He commented, pointing up. Kendall looked up, following his arm.

"It is." Kendall responded as she noticed it. She had once spent a little time showing Matt the constellations. She was a little surprised that he actually remembered any of it. She knew when she was nervous around him at the beginning; she had a habit of letting her mouth run away with her. Whenever she was nervous, she always defaulted to her safe zone. Their first date had been when he asked her to give her a tour of Amber Beach...and she'd proceeded to spend more than three hours on that guided tour! Matt had just quietly sat and listened to her as she gave a full run-down and history of practically every landmark in Amber Beach that would put the local tourist board to shame.

"Listen, can we at least talk about this?" He asked her.

"I don't really know what there is to talk about." Kendall answered. "We tried this, and it didn't work out."

"So just because we won't be dating we can't be friends?" He asked her. "You aren't just my little brother's tutor; you are also one of his best friends. We're kind of going to be in each other's lives."

"Matt, maybe this isn't the best time..."

"I think this is exactly the time." Matt told her as he stood before her. He placed his hands on her shoulders, looking straight into her eyes. "Look, I know it hurts. You've got to believe me, this is tearing me up inside, and if I'm honest, yeah there's a part of me that thinks if you walked away now and I never saw you again that maybe this would hurt less."

"Matt..."

"But the thing is, even if it wasn't for Riley, I know I liked you as a person before we got together." He told her. "I'd very much like you to still be in my life."

"This is so hard." Kendall told him, wiping away a couple of tears.

"Nothing in life worth having is easy." He replied. "I know you're heading back tomorrow, but do you think when you do, you'd do it as a friend?"

Kendall couldn't answer. For once, she couldn't come up with the words, but she did nod to indicate that would be for the best. As they headed towards the farmhouse, looking to it, Matt realised there was one last issue he hadn't thought of until now.

"Um...right..." Matt said, trying to broach the subject. "I guess for tonight, I can take the floor."

"You don't need to do that." Kendall assured him.

"You are the guest, I can't exactly ask you to take the floor." He answered.

"You seem to be forgetting your brother has a room." Kendall said to him. She had spent a lot of time on campsites, where personal space became less of an issue. It wouldn't be the first time she had shared sleeping quarters with people she had no interest in. Hell, she had once shared a tent with Dr Runga, a guy who had de-railed her career for years by taking credit for her research. However, she was pointedly aware that it would be more than a little uncomfortable to share a bed with Matt only hours after they had decided to go their separate ways. She saw the crown still in her hand and held it out to Matt. "You should take this."

"I don't understand." He told her as he took it.

"You should keep it for your real queen." Kendall explained. "Maybe you'll get those little princes and princesses, and for what it's worth...they'd be lucky to have you. Who knows? Maybe I could be kind of a cool aunt."

"Thank you." Matt said as he looked to her. "Goodnight Ms Morgan."

"Kendall." She corrected him with a smile. Matt smiled in return. He was glad to know he hadn't been relegated back to 'Ms Morgan' territory. With that, they both headed for the house.

Over at the Embassy, Phillipe was sitting on the couch, watching one of his favourite DVD's. He started laughing so hard that he nearly spit out his drink as he watched the Warner Brothers outwit Death in their attempts to annoy him so thoroughly he would let them go.

"Dadoo!" He chuckled, reiterating the pet-name they gave him when they declared him their dad and reminded him they would be there with him forever. "Classic Yakko!"

As he turned to see Margaret's reaction to the show, he couldn't help smiling to see that she had already fallen asleep. He got up and went to the TV turning it off, and looked to her.

"This was perfect, Margaret, it was exactly what I needed." He said as he looked around. Finding a blanket, he picked it up, coming across to her, laying it over her. Margaret barely stirred at all, indicating she was down for the count. He knelt beside her, resting his elbow on the couch and his hand on his face as he looked at her.

"You know Margaret; you always seem to know what's best for me. You know when I need a night of cartoons and jelly donuts and you know when I need a good kick up the arse." He said as he watched her. "You know...sometimes I wonder what I'd ever do without you. I hope to God I never have to find out."

He watched her for a moment longer, before getting up and heading for his room.

The following morning, over on the farm, Matt had gotten up to begin his chores. He passed by Riley's room, finding the door open. Looking inside, he noticed that the bed was made. He was a little surprised that she was up and about already. He went inside, only to see that her bag was already gone. There was a letter addressed to him lying on the bed. He picked it up, before heading downstairs to where his mom was already making breakfast.

"Good morning Matt." She greeted her son, gesturing for a kiss on the cheek. Matt bet down to allow her to do so. "Do you want to go and fetch Rubik? I've put out his food."

"Sure thing mom." He answered.

"Oh, and can you tell me how Kendall likes her eggs?" She asked. Matt just sighed.

"Mom, Kendall's already gone." He told her. Mrs Griffin looked to him a little curiously.

"She's up early." She commented. "She's heading back already?"

"Yeah, she's...she's gone, gone." Matt explained sadly. "We talked a little last night, and...we've decided to go our separate ways."

"Oh Matt, I'm so sorry." Mrs Griffin replied, hugging her son.

"It was a mutual decision." He assured her, knowing how protective she could be.

"Oh Matt, I know you really liked her." She answered. "Are you alright?"

"I will be." Matt answered, parting from her. "I really just want to concentrate on my work for a while."

"I understand." Mrs Griffin answered. "For what it's worth, I really am sorry. She was a lovely woman. I know she made you happy."

"Yeah, she did." Matt replied. "But you know, one of your famous omelettes might make me feel a little better."

"I'll just look out the sausage." She replied. "You go and find Rubik."


	8. A Frustrating Search

The early morning coffee run was well under way in the Dino Bite cafe, and the team were having a reasonably easy time of it setting up for the day ahead. With the whole team at the museum for once, there was plenty of manpower to go around. Even Brad seemed happy, despite turning up with a face like thunder after Allison had written him up for his lacklustre performance in the cafe lately.

"Just raise that banner a little...now it's uneven, Koda keep your end where it is, Chase raise your end a little." Shelby instructed as they started to put up a banner over a new exhibit. A Brontosaurus had recently been discovered by one of Anton's teams, and while it was going to take a while to figure out where to put the whole thing, so far they only had the skull. Such was the size of it that it would take several trucks to ship it all. "That's just about...perfect."

"Ms Morgan!" Riley called out as he saw her entering the museum. "You're back!"

"You're back already?" Shelby replied, turning to see her. Kendall was walking towards them purposefully, barely breaking her stride. Shelby started looking around, looking to see if anyone was with her. "Wait, where's your Purple...?"

"Shelby, Tyler, Riley, Chase, Koda, Ivan, basement now!" She rushed out making her way past them. Shelby just looked to Chase and Riley.

"I'll get Tyler, you two get Chase and Koda." She told them, heading off. Chase made his way into the cafe, finding Koda and Ivan.

"Guys, Ms Morgan wants us downstairs." Chase told them. Koda and Ivan just nodded in understanding, heading out of the cafe. Brad looked up from the counter.

"Hey...what the hell?" He called out. "You're leaving me alone?"

"The morning run's almost over and Leanne will be here any minute." Chase told him. "I think you're good."

As he left, Brad just muttered under his breath. The team got down into the lab, where Kendall was waiting for them. She had come straight from the farm, and so she had just dumped her bag on the floor as she waited to bring them up to date on their search.

"It's a pleasure to see you return so swiftly milady." Ivan greeted her.

"Yeah, that didn't take long at all." Tyler responded cheerfully. "So, where is he?"

"OR she?" Shelby corrected him, glaring at Tyler, before looking back to Kendall, smiling. "So, where's our new Purple Ranger? I can't wait to meet..."

"I'm afraid that my excursion was unsuccessful." Kendall told them. "I thought I had an ideal candidate but...it turned out the Energem disagreed."

"You had someone in mind?" Riley asked her. "Who?"

"It doesn't matter." Kendall answered. Although she was perfectly sure Matt would call Riley in good time and tell him about her visit to the farm, she really didn't feel like dredging it all up in front of her team right now. She was still a little raw about the whole thing, and she was sure they would have questions she really didn't have the patience for right now. She put the Purple Energem on the table to make the point. "The important point is, now...now we're back to square one. We still need a hero to become the new Purple Ranger."

"Unfortunately opportunities for heroism have been a little thin on the ground lately." Ivan told them, showing them the newspaper. "Thanks to this quiet spell people aren't showing their heroic side so much. Today the most heroic thing anyone's done is rescue a kitten from a tree."

"That's a little cliché." Riley responded, looking to the newspaper. "Wait...that was the front page? Wow, it really must be a slow news day."

"I guess we could try the kitty-rescuer." Shelby said with a shrug. "It's not like we have too much to lose."

"I think we're looking for something a little bigger." Kendall replied honestly.

"Maybe we should re-visit my 'set up an accident' idea." Chase suggested. The whole team just glared at him.

"To re-visit it, we'd have to have considered it in the first place." Tyler told him. "So if anyone knows any heroes..."

"I think I have an idea of someone who would fit the bill." Shelby suggested. "She already knows about us, and she's got something of a personal investment in this. She's got plenty of training..."

"Sounds great, who?" Chase asked.

"Margaret!" Shelby called out. "Come on! She's Special Forces trained, she knows who we are, and we all know she'd just love a chance to get to watch Phillipe's back."

Kendall was about to object, but she thought about it for a moment.

"In her career I'm sure she'd have had plenty of opportunities to prove her courage." Kendall said thoughtfully. "Maybe that isn't such a bad idea."

"We should probably not put all our eggs in one basket though." Chase told them. "Allison's just upstairs doing the stock take. It's not like the Energem will hurt her, we could always try."

"I know someone to try." Koda answered.

"Alright, everyone get thinking of who else we could try." Kendall told them. "Come on, we've got a busy day ahead."

"I'll check Allison now." Chase told them, picking up the Energem. "I'll meet you by the door in five minutes."

Up on Sledge's ship, the prisoner was lying on a surgical table. Wrench had finally finished with the reconstructive surgery that would give her a completely new appearance, allowing her to fool the Rangers when they met up with her again. Poisandra came bounding in with Curio only a short way behind her, carrying a large bunch of grapes and some flowers.

"Oh, did I miss the show?" She asked him, looking a little glum. Wrench wasn't really squeamish, most of his experiments could attest to that, but he did find it a little unsettling that Poisandra would consider watching him perform reconstructive surgery as a form of entertainment. Then again, he knew all too well that she was a sick individual who revelled in pain and destruction. It was one of the reasons she loved Sledge so much. He knew exactly how much she loved watching him work, and he knew a lot better than to go anywhere near their bedroom afterwards.

"The procedure is complete if that's what you mean." He answered as he cleaned off his hands. "I've reconstructed her face, and I've even altered some of the genetic markers for the pigment in her hair and skin. I've got her on some medication that should assist in her recovery. By this time tomorrow, she should be ready to deploy."

"Can I take a little peek?" She asked, reaching for the bandages covering her face.

"NOT YET!" Wrench warned her, pulling her away. He quickly let her go, seeing her expression. He knew he could expect a world of pain if she told Sledge he had touched her. "Right now the bones haven't set and the incisions haven't healed. Her face looks like a bad patchwork doll."

"HEY!" Curio called out, slightly offended.

"Oh, you know what you are; I made you out of a couch!" He shot back at Curio. "Just...go and find something else to occupy yourself with. She'll be ready soon, and then she'll cause enough carnage to make even you happy."

"Yes, I remember from the first time." She giggled, revelling at the memory. "Get well soon Christie. Amber Beach hasn't been the same without you."

Over in the Embassy, Margaret woke up, finding herself on the couch. She could remember sitting with Phillipe on the couch, watching his favourite cartoons to cheer him up after the meeting with Shelby's dad. She must have fallen asleep while they were watching. Phillipe must have put the blanket there. It was a little embarrassing that she had fallen asleep on him, but she smiled, thinking about the fact he had looked out a blanket for her. Yawning, she got up and headed for the shower, ready to start the day.

Phillipe meanwhile was downstairs, handling some phone calls. He smiled as he heard the voice on the other end.

"No, there's no need." Phillipe assured them. "Believe me; I would be more than happy to dedicate the new community centre. Friday at four? I'll have my people arrange my schedule."

He started to head towards the front door as he heard it.

"I'll see you then Ms. Foster." He told her. "Believe me, the pleasure would be all mine."

As he answered the door, he was a little surprised to find the team standing outside. He put his phone away.

"Well, talking of pleasure, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?" He asked them. "Is it Ranger business?"

"It kind of is." Shelby told him. "Is Margaret here?"

"Margaret?" Phillipe asked, looking a little confused. "Yes, she's here. Why do you ask?"

Kendall showed him the Purple Energem. Phillipe just looked to the team, flicking a thumb over his shoulder.

"You think...?"

"We need someone to bond to this Energem." Shelby told him. "You have to admit that Margaret would be a really good fit."

"You want Margaret to be a Power Ranger?" He asked them, starting to shift a little uneasily as he considered it.

"We're kind of on a tight schedule." Kendall responded. "Where is he?"

"She's...um...she's upstairs somewhere." He answered, letting Kendall and Shelby pass. The others filed in, making themselves at home in his entrance lobby. Phillipe just started pacing.

"Everything alright?" Tyler asked.

"Yes, it's just..." Phillipe's words tailed off as he thought about what they were asking.

"Dude, you don't exactly seem too thrilled about all of this." Chase responded. "You don't think Margaret would be a good Ranger?"

"What? No, nothing could be further from the truth." He told them. "She's strong, brave; she's generous to a fault. Frankly I'm convinced the only reason the Graphite Energem didn't choose her is because she never touched it."

"So what's the issue?" Tyler asked him. Phillipe looked like he was struggling to come up with an answer, before he pulled out his cell phone.

"I have...some important calls I need to make." He replied, making his way out into another room. Ivan just looked to the others.

"That was odd." He commented. "I believe we would be lucky to have Margaret on the team."

"Yeah, I wonder what that was about." Riley added. Chase just shrugged as he took a seat.

"Who knows? He always was kind of odd." Chase said as he took a seat to wait, picking up a newspaper and opening it to the cartoons. "Let's just wait until the girls check if Margaret is our new Purple Ranger or not."

Upstairs, Margaret was in her room, getting changed for the day ahead when she heard a knock on the door. When she answered, she was surprised to find Kendall and Shelby standing outside.

"Shelby? Kendall? What are you doing here?" She asked them. Shelby shoved Margaret back into her room while Kendall closed the door behind them. "Hey, what is this?"

"Margaret, this is your lucky day!" Shelby told her. "Ms Morgan?"

Kendall pulled out the Energem, showing it to Margaret. The bodyguard looked to the Energem and then to her friends in disbelief.

"You...you're not serious right?" She asked.

"Do you know Ms Morgan to joke?" Shelby asked her. Margaret had to concede that part. While she wasn't exactly a robot, nobody would say that she was known for being much of a joker. When it came to Ranger business especially, she was pretty much all business all the time. "Since Albert decided to stay in New Zealand, we really need a new Purple Ranger."

"So you came to me?" Margaret asked. "You want me to be your new Purple Ranger?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't we come to you?" Shelby asked. "Here, we're on a tight schedule here. Just grab this and..."

"WHOA!" Margaret said, recoiling away from the Energem like it was diseased. She genuinely didn't know much more about Energems than anyone else, in fact all she knew about them was what she had learned from Phillipe. "If I touch that and it doesn't choose me, it repels right? I don't know about you but I'm kind of attached to my arms!"

"Ordinarily unbonded Energems will repel anyone that is unworthy of their power." Shelby conceded. "But that's one of the issues. Since Albert is still alive, the bond wasn't completely severed. It's just kind of like...in limbo."

"The Energem won't repel anyone it's not bonded to." Kendall told her. "That makes it extremely dangerous. All that power, but it's not secured. If Sledge or one of his monsters gets it..."

"I get the picture." Margaret said, though she still didn't look like she was entirely convinced. Kendall rolled her eyes.

"Good grief." She stated, showing her hands to her. "I was carrying it and look, not so much as a cracked fingernail."

"So, you're sure it won't put me through that wall or anything?" Margaret asked. "So...why me?"

"Are you kidding? You'd be an amazing Ranger!" Shelby responded excitedly. "You have all that training, you're smart, and just between you and me, there are now six guys on this team. Sometimes it feels like a total bro-fest."

"Not to mention you have a personal investment in this." Kendall told her. "After Shearfear, we know that your interest in Phillipe extends beyond being his bodyguard."

"Hey, you said that you'd never say anything about..."

"Margaret, you've looked after Phillipe your whole life. Now, he's taking part in something you can't take part in." Shelby told her. "Allison, Alessandra...I don't know how they do it. I have to tell you, when Tyler is in the field, the only thing that stops me flipping out is knowing that I can be right there with him, watching his back."

"You've dedicated your life to protecting him." Kendall reminded her. "If you bond to this, you won't have to stop as soon as he morphs."

Margaret stopped to think about this for a moment. She had been in Phillipe's house her whole life. She had chosen to enter the military and train as a Royal Guard as soon as she was too old for it to be considered "appropriate" for her to hang around the palace without any real reason all so she could stay close to him. She had always loved the thought of being the one that kept him safe, that protected him. She didn't doubt he could protect himself, he had done a lot of the same training she had, but there was a part of her that took pride in the fact she was specifically assigned as his protector. A part of her identity was a little bit threatened by the fact Phillipe was now a Ranger. After all, it wasn't like she could protect him from the monsters or highly destructive weapons that Sledge possessed.

Having an Energem herself, she could follow him into the field. She would no longer feel helpless to protect him when he ran off to do battle. Taking a deep breath, she reached out her hand.

"I guess I'll have to shop for some more purple clothes." She commented. Kendall handed over the Energem, at which Margaret closed her eyes, still not sure how the energy would feel when it ran through her. As she stood there, she was disappointed when nothing happened.

"Nothing's happening?" Margaret asked, beginning to shake it. "Come on you stupid thing, work!"

"That really isn't going to help..."

"Phillipe's Energem didn't bond to him right away!" Margaret rushed out. "Maybe if I just wait a while?"

"I'm sorry." Kendall responded, taking the Energem back. "I'm sorry we got your hopes up."

"Wait, are you sure...?"

"For what it's worth, it didn't bond to Matt or Allison either." Kendall assured her.

"I was your THIRD CHOICE?" Margaret asked as they left. Shelby wanted to say something, but it did seem a lot like that. She caught up with Kendall as they were leaving.

"So...Matt was your first choice?" She asked. Kendall just glared at her.

"Really? That's what you want to talk about?" She asked. Shelby just got a sly little grin on her face.

"I just think it's interesting it took you three days to ask him." Shelby responded. Kendall's glare soon silenced her teasing though. She knew that Kendall wasn't really into talking about her personal life with the others, but the way Kendall looked at her now seemed to indicate that if she pursued this, there would be consequence she really didn't want to contemplate. As they got downstairs, they found the guys waiting.

"Well?" Tyler asked.

"No go I'm afraid." Kendall answered.

"Oh thank Go..." Phillipe started to say, before looking around, realising that the others were looking at him. "...You! Thank you for thinking of her!"

"So we're still on square one." Riley said, throwing his hands up. "What do we do now?"

"In my day if one wished to recruit a garrison all he had to do was go to the local tavern." Ivan declared. "Though admittedly the quality of applicants did vary somewhat."

"It's not like anyone's standing on street corners with a sign saying 'Heroes for Hire'." Riley agreed. "So what do we do now?"

"God, I can't believe I'm saying this, but we're out of options." Kendall responded. "Screw it; we're going with Chase's plan."

"Seriously?" Chase asked, his face lighting up, delighted at the vindication.

"You're serious about this?" Tyler asked her.

"If anyone has a better idea, trust me I'm all ears." Kendall snapped in frustration. No one said anything. "Fine, then let's go before I change my mind. Chase, this is your idea, you take the lead."


	9. A Desperate Plan

The following morning, a street fair was just starting to set up in Amber Beach. Around this time of year, there was always a fair sponsored by the local council as kind of a way of breaking the drag that always followed the end of summer. Most people, especially the kids, had been back at work for a few weeks now, and so it was a nice way of breaking things up for them all. It was an event that was set up to honour a Mayor who had served an unprecedented five terms spanning 20 years, but the fact was that few even remembered that now to the point the event no longer even carried his name.

Rides were being set up, performers were rehearsing, and stalls were all preparing to open up, just waiting to open up and let people come in and throw their hard-earned cash at them.

A guy in a garish costume, a long, red tail coat with black and white striped trousers, walked past a magician who was practicing his sword swallowing. As the man pulled the sword out of his mouth, before stowing it in his waist band, the man in the red tail coat came over.

"Derek, good to see your act hasn't suffered in your absence." The director complimented him. "It's been ages since I've seen you..."

"Yeah, Wendall, I've been keeping a low profile since some psycho almost made me fight a bunch of those seaweed monster things." Derek replied, taking a drink from a nearby water bottle. "It's not so bad, I've managed to perfect this really cool fire trick that I wanted to show you if you have..."

"Actually, I was wondering if you'd seen the fortune teller." Wendall answered. "I haven't seen her around."

"Her tent is right over..."

"Yeah, because I didn't think to try her tent first." He responded sarcastically. "Though talking to the others, a lot of them say she was spending an awful lot of time around your tent last night."

"What are you saying?" Derek asked him.

"Derek, where the hell is she?" Wendall asked him. Derek just shrugged.

"How the hell would I know? I'm a master of making women disappear remember?" He said cheekily. "Do you think I keep track of where they go the morning after? She probably went to get some breakfast or something."

"You're always a real touch of class Derek." Wendall said, covering his face with his hand and shaking his head in disbelief. "If you see her, let me know..."

"Hey Wendall!" Someone yelled from the ring-toss game. "I think I just saw her go into her tent."

"Great, thanks." He responded, before heading to the fortune-teller's tent. There was a stand set up outside, but unlike he was expecting, it was set up with an oddly carved wooden box, with pens and coloured cards nearby. He had seen fortune tellers use all sorts of props, the most common being things like crystal balls or tarot cards, but this was a different setup. He went into the tent, finding a woman only just finishing getting dressed. She seemed to have slightly tanned flesh and long, dark, curly hair. She was dressed in patterned red silks and intricate jewellery.

"Sorry, I didn't realise you were getting changed..."

"Don't worry, I'm dressed now." She replied, turning around. "You wanted to see me?"

"I was just making sure you're set up..."

"I have everything I need." She assured him. He just smiled in response.

"Well...if there's anything you need a strong box for your takings..."

"Oh, I don't charge for my services." She told him. Wendall just looked confused. "I...um...I just do it for the smiles on people's faces."

"Well, if you're sure." Wendall responded. "Say, why don't you give me a demonstration?"

"Demonstration?" She asked him.

"Yeah, read my fortune." Wendall clarified. She just chuckled.

"Oh, I don't do that anymore, I grant wishes now." She told him, getting a card and a pen. "Here, write down your wish and put it in the box outside."

"Really? That's it?" He asked. He just quickly scribbled something down on the card and handed her the pen. "No wonder you don't charge."

He headed out of the tent, depositing the card into the box as he went. The fortune teller just smiled.

"First one of the day." She commented as Poisandra and Curio came in, dragging the real fortune teller, bound and gagged, struggling against her captors.

"That was far too close." Poisandra commented. "We'll take care of this one. You just do what you do best."

"What if the Rangers don't come?" She asked. Poisandra thought about it for a moment.

"Well, they normally do when things start to get chaotic." She commented. "But its fun watching you work, it almost doesn't matter."

"Fury's out looking for the Rangers as we speak." Curio told her. "Until then, go grant some wishes, and...be creative!"

In another part of the city, Kendall was walking purposefully along the street, looking around for any signs of danger. She knew that the longer the Purple Energem was out in the open unbonded, the more they risked one of Sledge's goons figuring out that its power was up for grabs. While the monsters had yet to figure out where their base was, it had been made clear to them that they knew who the Rangers were. They had all been attacked directly at one time or another.

She still couldn't believe it had come to this. They had tried to work out who would make a good candidate and had even auditioned a few, but so far the Purple Energem had yet to choose anyone that it saw fit to replace Albert. From what she had heard from the others, he was a pretty hard act to follow. Despite initial reservations he had proven himself to be a pretty remarkable man. They were running out of ideas, which is why now she was about to risk her neck to create a situation that would encourage heroic acts.

While there were others that knew about them that weren't bonded to Energems, she wasn't willing to let anyone risk serious injury...possibly death if her calculations were out. The other Rangers had volunteered, but thanks to the Energems' power, the risk really wasn't the same for them. The first time they had met, Koda had tackled Chase straight through twin-paned bullet-proof glass and gotten back on their feet to continue fighting! No, if they were going to convince the Energems there was real danger it had to be someone that wouldn't just shrug off the consequences if things went wrong.

She rounded a corner, heading past a building site. As she got there, she saw the team hoisting a heavy pallet, loaded up with sacks of unmixed cement high into the air, and pulling it into position. She took a deep breath and quickened her pace; stepping into the area of cones she had set up to indicate exactly where the deadly pendulum would swing through. As soon as she was in position, she heard a yell go out.

"My hands!" Riley yelled. "Look out!"

They let go of the rope, setting the close to one ton weight on its path straight for Kendall. Everyone stopped still, hoping that this didn't end in disaster. It wouldn't be the first time Kendall had ended up in hospital as a result of Ranger business, but it would certainly be the first time it was by their own hand. Kendall just stood, stock still with a panicked expression on her face as she watched it heading straight for her.

She didn't see it coming, she felt someone slam right into her, tackling her straight out of the danger zone onto the ground. Her bag hit the ground, scattering its contents, including the Energem onto the concrete. She was helped to her feet by the stranger.

"Wow, thank you...you're a life saver!" She said to the man, looking impressed.

"Hey, I was just trying to help out." He told her. "Here, let me get those."

"No, seriously, you're a real hero." She told him. Unfortunately as he picked up the Energem, nothing seemed to happen. She was disappointed, but she just took back her possessions. The man started to stroke the back of his neck uneasily.

"So, could you help a guy out?" He asked, holding out his hand. "You know...a couple of bucks for saving your life and all?"

Kendall could only look to his outstretched hand and realised why the Energem hadn't chosen him. His actions weren't selfless; he had seen an opportunity to get some quick money.

"Come on, times are hard, I haven't had a job in a while and...I did just save your life." He said as he flipped his fingers, indicating for her to give him some money. She just scoffed.

"You want MONEY? You want PAID for helping me?" She asked him, throwing her hands up in the air. "That isn't heroic at ALL!"

As she stormed away, Chase, disguised as a builder just came over, pulling out a twenty dollar bill. He handed it to the man.

"There you go, thanks for all your help mate." He stated. The man just looked to the twenty in disgust.

"Wait...twenty bucks?" He asked. "You idiots nearly turned that girl into a sticky red spot on the pavement! Do you know how much this would have cost your construction company if she'd been hit? I just saved you at least a few grand!"

Chase just sighed and brought out a hundred, handing it to the guy. This made him smile, and he finally left the area. Riley just shook his head in disbelief.

"Wow, that guy was a piece of work." He commented. "I think we dodged a bullet there."

"At least you guys aren't out a hundred and twenty bucks." Chase groaned, winding his finger in the air to signal them to re-set the trap. "Alright guys, let's set it up! Let's go again!"

As they started to set up, no one noticed Fury arriving across the street, keeping just out of sight. He had seen the Rangers release the pendulum towards their own mentor. He had been asked to find them, but when he saw them willingly and deliberately put their own friend in danger, his curiosity was piqued. He found somewhere to set up in a better position and continued to watch.

Their next attempt didn't yield much more promising results. Kendall walked into the danger zone and waited, at which a guy ran and snatched her out of the way.

"Wow, you were really brave, you could have been hit!" Kendall complimented the guy. He was holding her tightly.

"I saw what was happening and I just had to help." He told her. "Here, I know some first aid, let me check you out..."

"I really don't think that would be necessary. I wasn't hit..."

"You never know what kind of injuries can happen without you really knowing it." He told her. "Strained muscles, pulled tendons..."

"Really, I feel fine." Kendall said, trying to get him to let go. Her expression slipped as she realised where he was going. "I sincerely doubt I would have hurt my boobs!"

"You never know, you can never be too careful..."

"Miss, are you alright?" Ivan rushed out as he and Koda came to check on Kendall. The man flew through the air, landing on a heap on the ground with a dazed expression on his face. Kendall just looked to them both.

"He isn't our guy." She told them, winding her finger to indicate to set up. "Let's do it again!"

"What...what happened?" He asked, looking a little confused. Ivan helped him up. "I just wanted to make sure she was alright and..."

"Yes, perhaps you were a little TOO enthusiastic with your examination." He suggested. "Now, be on your way sir grab-ass before I have the young lady come back to further teach you in the proper manner in which to conduct yourself around a lady."

Again and again they tried, but they couldn't believe how many ways people could let them down. On her latest run, Kendall hit the ground, having to throw HERSELF out the way of the pendulum since no one even attempted to help her.

"Really? No one?" She asked. As she got up, a man in a suit was quickly by her side.

"Don't move too quickly, I saw the whole thing!" He told her. "Here, just lie down, I can have a doctor here to examine you shortly..."

"Please, that really isn't necessary." Kendall told him. "I'm fine..."

"Just...don't say that out loud." The man told her. That wrist, how does it feel?"

"I feel fine..."

"Really? No aches? Pain? How about your neck, any whiplash?" He asked.

"Whiplash? I wasn't even..." Kendall started to say, before shaking her head. "Who the hell are you anyway?"

"Brandon Street, attorney." He told her, getting on his cell phone. "Just lie there, I have a doctor friend that can be here in an instant. He can give us plenty of documentation."

"Documentation?" She asked. She then realised what he was getting at. He was a lawyer and had just seen an accident, but he told her to keep quiet about her injuries. He had a 'friend' that was a doctor. He had seen what had happened and had only seen dollar signs. He was picking up her possessions, when he grabbed her Energem. He paused and stared at it for a long moment. Way too long!

"Oh God no!" Kendall muttered. "Um...are you seeing...?"

"This looks really valuable." He commented. "How much is it worth? If we say it was damaged we could claim..."

She got up and snatched her possessions from him.

"Thank God for that." She stated. "I'm fine, why don't you go and chase an ambulance or something?"

As she left, the lawyer looked to Chase and the others.

"Where's your foreman?" He asked.

"Since no one is making a claim, I really don't think that's any of your concern." Chase told him. "Come on guys, let's get back to work."

The net one looked a little more hopeful...at least on the surface. The pendulum was about to hit Kendall, at which a guy ran in and shoved her to the ground.

"Don't worry!" He told her. "I'll save you!"

Then, he did something none of them would have predicted. He stood his ground, right in the danger zone! He stood with his arms oustretched like he was actually going to try and catch it! It ended with predictable results as the pendulum hit him straight on, sending him flying through the air and into the middle of the street like a rag doll. Kendall and the others all rushed over, gathering around his unmoving form.

"Oh my God, are you alright?" Kendall rushed out, beginning to check him over. "He's unconscious but he's breathing."

"That was pretty brave." Ivan commented, looking to Kendall. "Though also somewhat foolish."

"I'll just go get the jeep." Chase told them. "I figure the least we can do is get him to a hospital."

"Alright, um...do we really want to risk another accident?" Riley asked.

"We'll try a couple more times before calling it a day." Kendall told them. "And...then we can think of something a little less likely to cripple a complete stranger."

Phillipe and Margaret were on a morning run, heading around the city. Margaret was a little way behind Phillipe, as always, just a little way from being able to keep up with him. She was still disappointed about the Purple Energem incident. She didn't claim that being a Ranger was ever one of her main ambitions. Since Zandar had been so isolated for so long, she had only even been aware of Power Rangers since the Corsairs had seen off the Armada that had taken control of the world. Her fondest wish had always been to be by Phillipe's side in everything he did. With Phillipe being a Ranger, there was a part of his life he couldn't possibly share with her, no matter how much he let her know and how honest he was with the risks he took.

"Come on, do try to keep up!" He teased her as they continued along the path, turning around and running backwards to smile at her.

"I think you forget, not all of us have Energems." She said, stopping by a drinking fountain to catch her breath. "Some of us are still human you know."

"We are still human; the Energems don't mutate us or anything." Phillipe told her, before furrowing his brows. "At least...I don't believe they do...Ms Morgan wasn't too clear on that part. Perhaps I should ask her."

Phillipe looked to Margaret as she caught her breath, thinking that she had a point. She did have more physical limitations than he did simply through virtue of the fact she wasn't bonded to an Energem. He knew why the Rangers had thought of her and had tried to bond her to the Purple Energem. If he was honest, he could think of no one better. She had always been a strong presence in his life. Strong, smart, confident, clever, and one of the few people in his life that was happy to keep him in line when his lofty dreams were taking him away from reality. He was sure that a lot of the reason the Graphite Energem finally saw him as worthy was down to her influence.

However, when he heard that the Energem hadn't chosen her, he had to admit that a part of him was glad. It wasn't the risk; he knew she had willingly risked her life in his service many times for years without question. It wasn't worries she wasn't good enough, he had every confidence she would be if anything a far better Ranger than he could ever hope to be. The fact was, he looked up to her in a way that he doubted she would ever understand. It was selfish, he knew that, but seeing the way she reacted to the fact he was a Ranger...he was happy that for once in his life, he felt like there was something in which she looked up to him.

"Well, this must be the famous half-term fair the Mayor told me about." Phillipe said, looking to her. He could see she needed a moment to recover from their almost ten mile run. "What do you say we take a little break and have some fun?"

"Really?" She asked. "You want to go to some cheap carnival? Your dad has the President of Disneyworld on speed-dial. You could get a VIP visit there any time."

"I don't know, this place seems to have...charm." He told her, putting his arm around her. "Besides, I'm going and as my bodyguard, I believe it is your duty to follow."

She rolled her eyes as he took her in with him.

"Oh stop moping. I promise I'll get you a candy apple." He assured her as they went in. He stood by the front entrance. "Where do we buy...?"

"There's no admission, you pay at the vendors directly." Wendall assured them. "Go in and have fun! Tell all your friends!"

As they went in, Phillipe looked to her.

"Oh come on, tell me this doesn't seem like fun." He told her. Margaret couldn't help smiling. For all his strives to become a fitting ruler of his nation, there were times like this when she could still see shades of the little boy she grew up with. He still had that sense of fun in him. They were interrupted as they heard a voice calling out to them.

"Make all your wishes come true." A woman called out. "Money? Love? Find that special someone with my wish cards."

"Hmm...how does it work?" Phillipe asked the woman. Margaret just looked to him.

"Really?" She asked sarcastically. The woman just ignored her.

"Just write your wish on one of these wish cards and place it in the box." She instructed them. "No matter what your heart's desire, it will come true."

"And how much exactly does this cost?" Margaret asked.

"Not one cent." The lady told her. "I seek only to grant wishes and bring smiles to the world."

"You're not serious are you?" Margaret asked as Phillipe took a card and a pen, beginning to write something down. He placed it in the box before she got a chance to see it.

"Oh what's the harm?" He asked her, handing her the pen. "Here, isn't there something you would wish for?"

"Margaret wasn't convinced at all, but she just sighed and began writing on the card. She doubted she would hear the end of it if she was a spoilsport and didn't go along with it. She had no idea who this woman was, and she somehow doubted she'd be back. Seeing that Phillipe had gone to get them both candy apples, she quickly scored out what she was writing and bit her lip, before writing down her real wish. She put the card in the box, and could see a little glow from inside...no doubt an LED that came on just for effect to look like it did something.

"May your heart's desire come true." Christie told her as Margaret went to return to Phillipe's side. An evil smirk crossed her face.

Back at the building site, the team had tried and failed a few more times to find someone suitable. It was beginning to look hopeless. They set up for one last attempt before they would have to vacate the site and the workers they had bribed to take a half-day off would want to get back to work before their employers realised they were gone would return. She once again headed towards the danger zone, and stood in position, waiting for the pendulum to come swinging towards her. As it did though, she found herself being picked up with ease and carried off in a large set of powerfully muscled arms.

She was placed down a couple of feet away and looked up into a handsome, chiselled face. The guy looked like something out of a movie, or an underwear commercial. His body was the kind of body that would put a lot of action figures to shame! He flashed some bright, white teeth at her. Over in position, Koda curled his arm to indicate that he too noticed the guy's build. The others started nodding in agreement. It looked like they had finally hit pay dirt!

"Thank you! You are a life saver!" She gasped as he released her.

"Well, I would save anyone as pretty as you!" He said with his cheesy, superhero grin. Kendall was just going into her purse to get the Energem when she caught a glimpse of him, and realised he was...flexing. "Hey, check out the gun show!"

"Um...that's very impressive..."

"And hey, that's not the only part of me that's big...if you catch my drift." He said with a wink. "So, how about we talk about where I'm taking you on our date?"

"Oh good grief." She muttered, putting the Energem away. "I'm sorry, but...I just got out of a relationship and...I'm really not looking for another."

"Just a hook up then?" He called after her as she walked away. He just shrugged as she didn't bother responding. "Hey, your loss."

She got back to the team, who had seen and heard everything.

"Alright, that's it for today." Kendall sighed.

"Are you sure we can't..."

"Those workmen will be back any minute. More importantly their employers will, and we'd best not be here when they arrive." Kendall told them. "We'll head back to the lab and figure out how to start again tomorrow. An unbonded Energem is far too dangerous."

"Unbonded?" Fury whispered to himself from his hiding place. It was then that it occurred to him. He hadn't seen Albert since the Rangers returned to America. He must have remained in New Zealand. That meant there was now an Energem up for grabs, and he knew exactly where it was!

"We need a hero to bond to this Energem, and we need it fast!" Kendall told them. "Now, let's meet up with Shelby and Tyler and get back to the lab. We've already been out here too long."

As they left, Riley just looked to Chase.

"Did...did Ms Morgan just say she and Matt split up?" He asked. Chase shook his head in response.

"Do you really want to ask her?" He asked in response. As they left, Fury came out of his hiding place. He started to laugh.

"So, the Rangers have an unbonded Energem do they?" He asked. "Master Sledge will find this news most interesting."


	10. Only The Insane

Fury scrambled out of his transport pod as soon as the door would open. He bowled over the viviks that were there to secure everything and ensure the safety protocols for ensuring the air lock on the ship was secure. The viviks weren't exactly ingenious creatures, but Sledge and Wrench had learned long ago that their simple mentality didn't stop them learning procedures and processes, but it also meant they were rarely distracted by repetitive tasks. They rarely got bored doing the same thing over and over again leading to corners being cut as usually happened with more complicated creatures, meaning they were perfect for safety procedures. Wrench made extensive use of the viviks for routine tasks on the ship and even in his lab in order to free up his time for more important tasks.

"Out of my way you useless lumps of seaweed!" He screamed as he shoved them all out of the way, scattering them on the floor. "Sledge! Sledge!"

"You want to see my Sledgeums?" Poisandra asked him. "This better be important, he's taking his nap...and you know how cranky he gets when he hasn't had his nap."

"It is, far too important for me to waste my time with you!" Fury responded harshly. "Now where is he? SLEDGE!"

"What is all this racket about? I can barely hear myself think never mind sleep!" Sledge grumbled as he stumbled out of his chambers. "FURY! I thought I told you..."

"You told me to report anything important! I have vital information Sledge!" Fury told him. Sledge just growled.

"It better be!" He warned him. "I'll never get back to sleep now."

"Sledge..."

"MASTER Sledge!" Sledge corrected him.

"But we're..."

"You'll have to earn your way back UP to being a partner!" Sledge told him flatly. "Now, what is it?"

"I saw the Rangers doing something odd in the city. They were pretending to be builders and..."

"Poisandra my sweet, could you bring me my blaster?" Sledge interrupted him, encouraging him to get to the point quickly. Poisandra gleefully skipped off to fetch Sledge's blaster, hoping to see him incinerate Fury.

"I overheard the blonde scientist. She said they were trying to inspire acts of heroism, to find..."

"To find someone to replace the Purple Ranger...this is hardly surprising Fury!" Sledge responded as Poisandra came back with his blaster. "Now, I can't remember is it three or four that's the highest I can safely fire in here...?"

"She said that the Energem no longer rejects people!" Fury rushed out. This caught Sledge's attention. "The Purple Energem is safe to handle."

"Now that IS interesting. Good work Fury!" Sledge stated as he put his blaster down, much to Poisandra's disappointment. "All we need is a way to get it from the Rangers."

"Christie's cards should be starting to sow confusion soon..."

"No, I have another idea." Sledge told them. "They need a hero...how about someone that LOOKS like a hero?"

He pressed a button, at which Wrench came into the room, being summoned from his latest work.

"What is it Master Sledge?" He asked.

"Get the keys to solitary." Sledge told him. "I have the perfect candidate."

"Wait...you're not seriously thinking about...HIM?" Fury asked. "Master Sledge! You can't...he makes POISANDRA look sane!"

"Just do as I say." Sledge replied. "They want a hero...I'll give them a hero they'll NEVER forget!"

Over in the Dino Bite cafe, the lunch rush was well underway. Allison was a lot happier with the way things were running now. Although Brad was still sulking, Leanne was a complete Godsend. The way she negated the dining room, the way she seemed to pre-empt every customer's whims almost before they could voice them...it was nothing short of uncanny! Allison was confident there was even a lot she could learn from the young waitress.

"We're out of sliced pickles!" Brad called out. Allison just rolled her eyes.

"There's a jar of them in the fridge!" She reminded him.

"But they're not sliced!" He protested. Allison just looked to him with her hand on her hip.

"There's a jar of unsliced pickles and there's knives in the kitchen." She told him. "Can you see a potential solution to this problem?"

"You want me to slice...?" He started to say, pulling a face. Brad was never one that liked to get his hands dirty. He much preferred taking the pre-prepared goods off the heat lamp to anything else.

"You know what Brad, never mind I'll do it myself!" Allison snapped. "You do still remember how to work the register right?"

She muttered as she took Brad's place in the back, taking a knife off the rack in the wall and the jar out the fridge. She tried to open the jar, but the lid was jammed hard.

"Stupid thing." She muttered, running the lid under the tap in a move she had seen Shelby use once. She still couldn't budge it. She gripped the jar tightly in her hands and started tapping it on the edge of the counter; unfortunately she hit the jar a little too hard, causing it to break in her hands. She dropped its contents all over the floor as she felt the sting of vinegar, and saw blood running between her fingers.

"Damn it!" She called out, grabbing her wrist. Brad and Leanne were quickly in the back, and they could see her holding her wrist. "The stupid jar broke in my hands!"

Leanne just stared at Allison, and all the colour drained from her face. She just stared for a moment, before she turned and ran from the room.

"I've...I've got to..." She barged her way out, hurriedly leaving the restaurant. Brad just snorted.

"What do you know, there's something Supergirl doesn't deal with too well." He responded. Allison just glared at him.

"Yeah, she gets a little squeamish around blood." Allison responded. "Now could you do something helpful? You know...preferably BEFORE I bleed to death?"

Brad just got the first aid kit off the wall, opening it as he took Allison's hand.

"Alright, let's have a look." He responded.

In another part of the city, Tyler and Shelby were waiting for the others. They had been working on Kendall's computer most of the morning to try and find potential candidates for the Purple Energem. So far, all they could really think of was things like fire fighters, police officers and suchlike. Sledge's lack of recent activity had made acts of heroism a little thin on the ground, and they had a feeling that walking into the local fire department and asking the crew there to all hold a gem was not likely to meet with a positive response.

They had found the carnival on their way, and had decided to make a little detour to take a look. It wasn't far from where Kendall had originally intended they meet up, and they figured it couldn't do any real harm. Tyler was holding a large teddy bear he had won from one of the ring toss games, while Shelby was enjoying a cotton candy.

"Kendall's text says they're here." Tyler told her. "It's not that big of a fair, we should find them soon."

"That's not all we'll find." Shelby said, gesturing to where Phillipe was with Margaret over by a test of strength machine. "Check that out!"

"He's probably here in an official capacity." Tyler told her.

"When was the last time you saw him in an official capacity wearing yoga pants?" She asked him. "I don't see any guards either. Say, you don't suppose they're on a...date do you?"

"Phillipe and Margaret?" Tyler asked in response. "You aren't going to give up on that are you?"

"What? We know how Margaret feels." Shelby said to him as they wandered through the fair. "They've known each other forever...don't you think she'd be good for him?"

"I think maybe you read too many romance novels." Tyler teased her. "Hey, there they are over there."

From the other direction, Ivan, Riley, Koda and Kendall were heading into the fair.

"Welcome to the travelling fair, allow me to beguile and astound..." Derek the magician started to say, greeting them as they entered. He looked up, seeing Ivan. "YOU!"

"Ah, my good man. Derek was it not?" Ivan stated. Derek started pointing towards him, flailing wildly as he started to back away. "It has been some time."

"You...you...you were the one..." He stammered. "Keep that freaking psycho away from me!"

With that, he turned and ran for his life as playing cards, handkerchiefs and doves flew out of his coat at intervals. He didn't look like he was stopping for anything as he disappeared into the distance. Riley just looked to him.

"Old friend?" He asked.

"He was one of my retinue." Ivan sighed. "Clearly he has not forgotten the experience."

"May I interest you in a wish card?" Christie beckoned them as they passed by her table. "They're completely free. Just write down whatever you wish for!"

"Wishes?" Riley asked. "No thank you. We're not superstitious."

"I am super squishiness." Koda said cheerfully as he picked up a pen and a card.

"And I've been trying to get some time away with Allison for ages." Chase added. "I could use all the help I can get!"

"Tell me, does such sorcery actually work?" Ivan asked Kendall. Conjurers and those who claimed to have unnatural powers were common in his time, but even then it was known most were mere entertainers who claimed to have such powers and used misdirection and trickery to bamboozle and entertain the masses. Of course he also knew that there were far more things in the world than could be explained away as tricks. It was difficult to know which of the many who claimed to have mystical gifts genuinely did and which were charlatans. Kendall started to pinch the bridge of her nose.

"Frankly...no." She told him. "It's just something a lot of people do for fun..."

"Hey guys." Tyler said as he and Shelby arrived.

"Hey Koda." Shelby said as she approached the Blue Ranger. "I brought you one of our new Tropical Burgers!"

Koda gasped and immediately pointed to the box on Christie's table where he had deposited his wish card.

"THAT MY WISH!" He declared excitedly as he took the bag from Shelby and immediately started eating. Riley just rolled his eyes.

"Koda, that's not how it works..." Riley tried to explain. "You ALWAYS wish for a burger! It's just a coincidence!"

"Excuse me." Someone said, running up and tapping Chase on the shoulder. The Black Ranger just looked to him a little confused.

"Can I help you?" He asked. The man handed Chase an envelope. "What's this?"

"You were the one hundredth person to enter the carnival." The man told him. "You won a weekend for two in the Oceanview hotel, congratulations!"

Ivan, Shelby and Tyler all looked at each other as they heard this. Before good reason could intervene, they all scrambled to the table and began scribbling down wishes.

"Go ahead, wish for whatever your heart desires." Christie beckoned them. "Love, riches, power...whatever you wish will be yours!"

"Yeah, I think I'll stick to the tried and tested route of working for what I have. Right Ms Morgan?" Riley asked. Kendall took a moment to answer, watching the Rangers deposit their wishes into the box. She was sure it was only a harmless piece of fun, like getting her palm read or having someone read tarot cards generally was, but after recent events, after her visit to Millport, she couldn't help wondering, what would she wish for?

"Yes, of course." Kendall replied. "Come on guys. There's plenty more work to do."

Meanwhile, up on Sledge's ship, Sledge and his crew were heading towards the Solitary block, past all of the prisoners who rushed to the bars, all rushing out pleas and bargains to their captor. While they knew that those Sledge had released had all met their end at the hands of the Rangers, the one thing every prisoner on Sledge's ship knew was that a lucky few had been chosen to leave the ship. Their eternal imprisonment had left most of them with an aching hopelessness, knowing that even old age and death would not release them from their bondage. Only Sledge could. For most, even a slim chance of survival was preferable to an eternity of captivity.

"Master Sledge, please I urge you to reconsider!" Fury tried to reason with him as they headed for the solitary unit. "We...we just need someone that can be MADE to look like a human. Wrench could do that I'm sure!"

"We're on a ship full of criminals and despots! The Rangers would see through their act in a second!" Sledge told him. "Wrench, open the cell!"

"But Master Sledge..."

"I said OPEN IT!" He roared, shoving Wrench down the hall. Sledge had threatened Wrench with putting him IN the solitary block before, and honestly there was nothing that terrified him more than that thought. He knew that solitary was reserved for the worst of the worst, those with such specific needs for their continued captivity. They were so dangerous that all but the most stringent security would be useless to keep them. Some were so dangerous, it was whispered, in private of course, that even Sledge was afraid of them. Wrench approached the door, putting the key in and activating the security systems. The door opened, leaving only a pitch black pit in the wall.

"Master Sledge, we can't use this lunatic!" Fury pleaded with him. "He's far too dangerous!"

"I know several destroyed star systems that would agree!" Wrench cringed as he thought about the horrors their prisoner had unleashed. Sledge just gestured to a couple of Spikeballs, who were standing by the door. They took up chains as Wrench was preparing to take down the last of the security measures.

"We've all destroyed star systems." He responded. Two more Spikeballs grabbed the chains to assist their brethren. Reluctantly, Wrench took down the last of the security. The Spikeballs started to tug on the chains. Everyone was surprised when nothing happened.

"Nobody's been to his cell in centuries." Wrench said, almost starting to sound hopeful. "Maybe...maybe he's..."

"Oh, I'm not dead." They heard a voice echo from within the darkness. "But I don't come to heel on command."

With that, there was a huge tug on the chains, which ripped them from two of the Spikeballs' grip. The other two were not so fortunate, flying into the cell. There was a hellish scream, which quickly went silent. They heard footsteps coming towards them.

"Get the chains!" Sledge commanded. The other two Spikeballs were now terrified as they grabbed the chains, pulling them taught. Before long, the prisoner stepped forth.

He looked human, at least on a cursory glance, though he certainly didn't dress like anyone they had seen. He wore a long coat, with a pinstripe suit. He wore a bright waistcoat, beneath which was an orange shirt and an aquamarine cravat. He had black, fingerless gloves and a shock of aquamarine in his hair. A pair of goggles hung redundantly around his neck. As he looked up, his icy gaze chilled everyone in the room. Even though his hands and feet were shackled, everyone reacted like he was being held with twine.

"I haven't been out of that cell in centuries." He said, starting to stretch out his neck, before looking to Sledge. "Ah, Sledge. It's been a while...you haven't aged well. Do you really want a re-match?"

"Hekyl. You find yourself in a position where you're useful to me." Sledge sneered in response, but he already had his hand on his blaster, and dangerously for on board the ship, it was set to full power. He knew the danger was that he could blow out the side of the ship, sucking them all into space to their doom, but he also knew that anything less to Hekyl would likely only amuse him. He was as powerful as he was insane, and centuries in isolation were unlikely to have done anything to rectify his sanity. "You look human, and so you can be of use to fool the Rangers. They're looking for a hero. Bring me the Purple Energem, and I'll release you."

"That is an interesting offer. It really is tempting, but I'm afraid...I'm going to have to pass." Hekyl responded with a bright smile. It quickly faded and turned to a satanic glare. "I'm not the kind of man who just gets let out of prison. I expect to be PAID to leave!"

Lightning erupted from his hands. The chains exploded from his form, and the two remaining Spikeballs burst into flames, screaming in agony as they incinerated in the blink of an eye. Every cell in the cell block opened without warning, forcing Wrench and Fury to rapidly struggle to get everyone back inside and close over the doors before they had a riot on their hands. Sledge didn't move, he expected something like this. Hekyl was nothing if not dramatic. He had no interest in freeing the prisoners; this was just his way of making a point. Hekyl tented his fingers as he strode towards Sledge.

"Now, how about I propose a DIFFERENT deal?" Hekyl suggested. "I get an Energem, and then you and I become partners."

"Partners?" Fury asked him. "What would you want with an Energem?"

"I believe the adults were talking." Hekyl responded dismissively without even looking at Fury. He smiled. "My reasons are my own. I have...unfinished business at home. I believe your little treasure hunt can help me with that."

"Whatever. Bring me an Energem and I'll take you wherever you want to go." Sledge assured him. Hekyl let out a little sound of delight.

"Excellent." He responded, before grabbing his goggles. "I just hope my shades are still in style!"

"They better be." Sledge warned him. "If you fail me, I'll throw you into the sun!"

"I would love to see you try." Hekyl said under his breath as he headed for a transport pod.


	11. Wishes

Phillipe and Margaret arrived back at the Embassy after their run, Phillipe carrying Margaret in a bridal carry as he went through the door. After their short stop at the fair, they had continued on their run, but they hadn't gotten far before Margaret had gone over on her ankle. They were still some way from the Embassy, but they had gone on their run without a detail. Phillipe often felt that he didn't really need a full detail so long as he was with Margaret.

"Hello!" He called out as he carried her inside. "I need some help here!"

"Phillipe, it's alright..."

"Damn it all, where is everyone?" He grumbled as he took her in through the entranceway. "Is anyone here?"

"Phillipe, it's really alright." Margaret told him, feeling a little embarrassed. She was his personal bodyguard, the head of his security detail, and yet here she was, needing to be carried home after twisting her ankle on a curb. Her ankle really did hurt like hell, she had tried to stand on it, but it was much too painful to walk on. It would be humiliating for her to be seen by the rest of her team being carried by the man she was charged with protecting.

That being said, there was a part of her that did feel pretty good about being carried, even if it did feel like her foot was about to fall off. As he carried her through to a lounge, putting her down as gently as he could on a couch, he looked around for someone to help. "Damn it all, where is everyone?"

"I'm sure they're probably around here somewhere." She told him. He placed her ankle on a bunch of pillows, trying to make it as comfortable as possible. "Phillipe, you don't need to fuss, I'm sure I've just twisted it."

"I admire your courage, but humour me would you?" He asked her. "Try to rest up. I'll look for one of the others...and a first aid kit."

He ran off to look for some help, leaving Margaret alone for a second. She could hardly believe this had happened. In her role, she had received a few injuries. The paparazzi could get pretty aggressive at public events. She had even been stabbed once in the line of duty, but of all the things that had happened; she couldn't believe she had been laid low by a four inch curb. She reached to her foot to try and remove her trainer, but as she did, white-hot needles of pain flashed up the length of her leg, forcing her back down. Phillipe arrived back in the room, carrying a bag of ice.

"I found a note; the team went to the youth centre for some reconnaissance." He told her. Margaret closed her eyes as she realised she had forgotten all about that. He was due to open a newly refurbished youth centre shortly, and she had asked the team to go and check out possible escape routes, the local surveillance, possible hiding areas for anyone aiming to harm Phillipe, all so they could form a strategy to reduce the risk of his public appearance as much as possible.

"Damn it." Margaret muttered. "I told them to do that this morning. Alright, so...who's still here?"

"Um...no one actually." Phillipe responded. Margaret's eyebrows shot up.

"ALL of them went?" Margaret called out. "You've got to be kidding me. They left no one behind?"

"Well, I guess that means it's just the two of us then." Phillipe responded. Margaret just gulped as he said this. "So...um...I guess we should have a look at this then."

"J...J...Just the two of us?" She asked as he went to her shoe to try and remove it. "Phillipe, please be careful..."

"Now now Margaret, you forget I've taken the same first aid training you have." Phillipe replied.

"Maybe I'd be a little more confident if you actually had a first aid kit." Margaret said as he went for her shoe. "Phillipe..."

"I couldn't find it!" He told her. "You never told me where your team keep it!"

"It's in the cupboard in the kitch...AAAGHH...STOP, STOP!"

Phillipe backed away as he realised he was hurting her. A look of concern crossed his face seeing exactly how she reacted to him trying to take off her shoe. The fact he could barely touch her without causing such pain was not a good sign.

"Alright, we need to take a look at this." Phillipe told her, looking around. He got a pair of scissors. He quickly cut the laces, and took hold of the shoe and her leg. He pulled it off quickly to try and limit how much he aggravated it. It was still enough that by the time he looked to her, there were tears in her eyes. "Alright, now for the sock..."

"Just cut the damn thing off!" She beckoned him. Phillipe nodded in agreement, carefully cutting the sock off. Margaret was also quickly coming to the conclusion that it was a lot more than just a twisted ankle. She bit her tongue to keep from screaming out and embarrassing herself in front of Phillipe. When the sock was finally off, Phillipe just backed off a little. It was no wonder it was so painful, her ankle had swollen right up, and it was already discoloured.

"Um...Alright, I'm sure this is...um..." He could see the look on her face and realised that she was already worried. "I'll...I'll get the car. We should get that looked at."

As he went to get the car, Margaret just slumped into the sofa and sighed. She couldn't help thinking about the wish she had made.

"When I asked for some time alone with him...this isn't exactly what I meant." She grumbled.

Meanwhile, over at the Dino Bite Cafe, Kendall and the team had arrived back at the museum some time ago, but until Kendall could come up with a new idea of how to find a suitable candidate for the Purple Energem, they really were at a loss. Seeing no real sense in keeping all of them tied to the museum, Kendall had allowed everyone to go their own way. Everyone had other things they needed to do. Kendall was down in the lab with Riley following up on some leads, Shelby and Tyler had gone out into the park, finally taking an opportunity for a long-overdue date, Chase had surprised Allison with the weekend trip he had won after her shift, and Koda had gone to the gym to train with Jack.

Erica and Claire were working in the restaurant, with Ivan as the one drawing the short straw to help. With Allison away, one of them needed to stay, and Ivan was the only one of them that really didn't have anything better to do, and so he had volunteered to stay and help. Erica came into the back, smiling brightly as she arrived.

"Do you have the order for table three?" She asked him.

"One Bronto Burger, medium with extra crispy bacon, one Pterodactyl Tuna Melt grilled to perfection and one Ankylo-Dog just as you requested milady." He responded. Erica took the order, and headed back out to the main floor to take her order to the table. At that moment, Heckyl was heading into the restaurant. He had been told by Sledge that this was where the Rangers worked, and so he had concluded that it would be a good place to start looking for them.

As he headed into the cafe, he took up some chilli pepper from the condiment station, and as he was heading through the room, he slid a stool with his foot directly into Erica's path, causing her to trip and spill her order. While everyone was distracted by the commotion, he "seasoned" a couple of ice-creams while he went to the counter. Claire was just finishing up with a customer when she looked to him, smiling.

"Dino Bite Cafe, how may I help you?" She asked him.

"Oh...it all looks so tempting." Heckyl said looking to the menu. "You would not believe how long it's been since I've had a good hazelnut mocha."

"Well, our coffee is rated among the best in town." She said, beginning to prepare his order. "Say...I don't think I've seen you around here. Are you new in town?"

"You could say that." He responded. "I was actually looking for someone. Have you seen the museum director?"

"Ms Morgan?" She asked. "I haven't seen her all day. I don't think she's in today."

"Well, I suppose I'll have to catch her another time then." Heckyl said with a smile. Just then, another commotion went up from the dining room as some of the customers started to react to their uniquely altered deserts. Erica could see that one of the customers was having difficulty breathing, being in the middle of shock.

"Claire, call an ambulance for this guy!" Erica shrieked. "Ivan, get some water FAST!"

"What the devil happened in here?" Ivan asked as he came into the room, carrying a pitcher of water. By now the whole cafe was in chaos as customers were either reacting in agony to their spicy deserts or angrily demanding action from the staff. As a result, none of them noticed Heckyl walking out with his coffee. He stopped by the door as he saw a plaque, showing Kendall's picture. Underneath the picture was her name.

"Ms Morgan eh?" He commented as he took the plaque off the wall. "Pretty lady."

With that, he tucked it under his arm and walked out, casually sipping his coffee while Ivan, Erica and Claire struggled to calm the scene of chaos he left in his wake.

Meanwhile, at the gym, everyone was working extra hard in order to get noticed. While most of the card had already been finalised, there were still a couple of slots open, and Carl was keeping his eye out for anyone that looked promising to fill them. Alessandra was just staring blankly at Koda as she held the Purple Energem in her hand.

"What you think?" Koda asked her. "You feel any different?"

"I no feel anything." Alessandra responded as she handed it back. Koda was a little disappointed by this. Alessandra was ideal in his mind. She could already do things that a lot of the team couldn't, and since she now knew about them, she worried about him and his battles. Just like he was worried when she was in a match, he found that he was a lot calmer and was able to relax more when he was wrestling himself. He understood the risks a lot more, and he was able to be a lot more confident in the people she worked with if he also wrestled. He was hoping that if Alessandra was a Ranger too, then she would feel the same way. "I guess I no hero."

"You hero to me." Koda told her with a smile. Unfortunately, his stomach grumbled, and he felt a shooting pain in it. "No know how Energem work. Very...grooh..."

"Hey, Koda are we training or what?" Jack yelled at him from the ring. "I wanted to show you that gut-wrench suplex!"

"Oh...please no say gut." Koda begged him as he went to the ring. He offered Jack the Energem. "You hold...?"

"What the hell is this shit?" He asked, grabbing the Energem and throwing it out of the ring. Alessandra quickly retrieved it and returned it to Koda's bag. "Do I look like I waste time with jewellery? Get your arse over here!"

Koda stood as Jack grabbed him tightly around the waist.

"Now, jump when you feel me pull and flip." Jack told him.

"No feel good, please no hold so...TIIIIGHHHHT!" Koda was flipped over as Jack gripped and wrenched his stomach hard. As he landed on the mat, the impact had an unfortunate effect.

"Aw Jesus!" Jack complained as he held a hand over his face. "Carl!"

"Mother of God!" Carl said as he got into the ring, recoiling. "I'll...I'll get some stuff to clean up."

"I no feel well." Koda groaned, clutching his stomach. "Tropical burger bad idea!"

"Yeah, it looks that way." Jack told him sympathetically. "For what it's worth...you wouldn't be the first guy that shit himself in the ring."

"Right, let's get him to the bathroom to get cleaned up." Carl told them. "And...we'll see if we can find you something to wear on the way home."

On the interstate, well outside the city, Chase was in the passenger seat of Allison's car as they headed for the hotel. Allison still couldn't believe that not only were they finally getting their weekend away, but that Chase had been lucky enough to win a suite in a five star hotel! She had hoped for a while that they would finally get that time together, but she understood that there was a lot of demands on Chase's time.

"So you're sure there's a pool?" She asked him. He just chuckled.

"I checked the web site. There's a pool, sauna, spa...and it's all inclusive." Chase reminded her. "And we can enjoy it all...if I can figure out this map."

"You can't read a map?" She asked him.

"I'm just having a little difficulty with which exit we're meant to take." He responded.

"We'll just follow the signs for San Angeles." She told him. "I can't imagine there are too many 'Oceanview Hotels' in San Angeles."

"Yeah, but I've heard the roads are pretty confusing." He reminded her. "If we get the right turning..."

Suddenly, there was a loud bang from the engine, followed by some laboured engine sounds.

"What the hell was that?" He asked.

"It didn't sound like anything good." Allison gulped. "I know this thing is overdue for a service but..."

Just then, large plumes of smoke started to billow out from under the hood. Allison had no choice but to pull into the hard shoulder and kill the engine. They both got out, and could only stare at the smoke drifting out.

"Son of a bitch!" Allison complained. "We're MILES from San Angeles!"

"We're even further from Amber Beach." Chase reminded her. "Do you have breakdown cover?"

"I do...but...my phone is dead." She told him.

"Your phone's dead?" He responded, looking to her. She just held up her hands defensively.

"My lighter's been broken for months! I was going to charge my phone at the hotel!" She told him. Chase just sighed.

"Just as well someone came prepared." He said with a smug little smile. "I have my phone...in the pocket of my hoodie..."

"Your hoodie?" Allison asked him. "You mean the hoodie you left behind?"

"That would be the one." He sighed, before pulling out his Dino Charger. "I could always call my Raptor Cycle."

"So...I get to explain why the Black Ranger is giving me a lift miles from his home city?" Allison reminded him. Chase had to admit she had a point. It wasn't going to be easy to explain that. He went to the trunk of the car and lifted out their bags.

"Then I guess we're walking." He responded. Allison took her bag. "San Angeles is ten miles this way...Amber Beach is 89 miles the opposite way."

"Then I guess we're still going to the hotel." Allison responded as she hooked her arm in Chase's as they headed in the direction of the city. "Well, we should look on the bright side. At least it can't get any worse."

As soon as she heard that, there was a rumble of thunder, and the heavens opened up. She could already feel Chase looking at her.

"Don't say it Chase, just...don't say it." She warned him.

Back in Amber Beach, Tyler and Shelby had opted for a quiet picnic in the park. It was something they had planned to do for a while. Tyler had a large bucket of bubble mixture, and he was in the process of making a huge bubble. He smiled as he walked it out, creating a large, shimmering bubble.

"Hey, I knew I remembered how to do this! My dad taught me! What do you think Shelby?" Tyler asked her. He looked to the picnic mat to see that Shelby was busy with a bunch of forms. "Shelby? You're not even looking!"

"Hmm?" She responded. Tyler gestured to the huge bubble. "Oh...that's great!"

"Shelby, what are you doing? This picnic was your idea remember?" He asked her. She just sighed.

"I know, and I'm sorry but...this is important." She told him. Tyler sat with her and took one of the forms, reading it. "Terrence Thatcher Memorial Grant?"

"Dad's made it pretty clear he's never going to bank-roll my palaeontology course at college." Shelby told him. "And while those online courses have been great, I figured if I really wanted to get serious I needed something a little more...impressive."

"So you're applying for grants?" He asked her. "How did you...?"

"I found some online." Shelby told him. "I mean, Ms Morgan's been great but...I can't keep asking her for favours. I suppose I just...have to hope one of these turns up."

"No way." Tyler gasped. Shelby just looked hurt as she heard this.

"Thanks for the support!" She shrieked.

"Dad?" He asked. Shelby just looked completely confused.

"What does any of this have to do with...?"

"Dad?" Tyler asked again, getting up and walking past her. Shelby turned around, and she could hardly believe what she was seeing. Sitting on a bench, perhaps only thirty feet away was a man she recognised from the dust jacket of many of her books. Dressed in an Aquamarine flannel shirt, and khaki trousers, reading a book like he didn't have a care in the world was none other than the legend himself, Dr Neil Nevarro!

"DR NEVARRO?" She yelled, getting to her feet. It seemed that this caught his attention, he definitely heard her. He hurriedly put his book away in his backpack, but then he did something neither of them expected. He clearly heard them, he even seemed to recognise Tyler but instead of moving to embrace him...he took off running as fast as he could!

"DAD!" Tyler called out as he and Shelby made off in hot pursuit. They ran through the park, trying to catch up with him, but before they could get to him, both of them were thrown to the ground in a massive explosion.

"DAD!" Tyler called out, reaching out from the ground as he saw his father disappearing from view. Anger overtook him as they got up, and looked to see what had attacked them. What they saw was all too familiar.

She was a tall, slender creature, with a shapely musculature, clad in a kind of red leather armour, fitted with silver plates. Her long, blonde hair was tied into a tight plait which extended from the back of her head down to her waist, while her face...it was a simple, faceless mask, smooth, unmarked, with the dark, black pits of eye holes being the only feature. She was carrying a long, curved sword in each hand.

"Hello Rangers!" Christie greeted them. "Remember me?"

"How could I forget?" Shelby responded, remembering what had been one of her most disturbing memories as a Ranger. Christie had posed as a human, a waitress in the restaurant and had even befriended Shelby. Unfortunately as a result of that ruse, she had been able to cause a lot of pain and chaos for the team. "I guess we should have seen this coming. Sledge has been recycling a lot of his losers lately."

"Oh, you don't even know the half of what I've done!" Christie screamed as she ran towards them. Tyler and Shelby morphed as they dodged her first attack.


	12. If Wishes Were Horses

Fury was up on Sledge's ship, taking a bit of a rest and having a snack while he kept an eye on a selection of screens for news reports around the city. He didn't like to spend too long off the ship these days. The aches and pains were coming more frequently, and he wasn't as energetic as he used to be. He knew that without absorbing more human life-force, his aging was becoming a serious problem, and so he wanted to be away from the stasis technology of the ship as little as possible. Especially when he didn't REALLY need to be there, all he really needed to do was ensure that Christie was still granting wishes and creating chaos. It would be some time before he was actually needed in the field, it would take the Rangers a while before they figured out what was going on.

As he slurped a cup noodle, his feet crossed on the table before him, he chuckled as he saw reports starting to come in that showed really obvious signs that people had been making wishes. A guy was being hauled into the back of a police car, protesting his innocence of bank robbery screaming that he had just "found" the bag lying in a bush! As doubtful as that story sounded on the surface, Fury was not willing to rule out the probability that he had wished to get that money, but never specified HOW.

"FURY!" Sledge roared as he came into the room, swiping his feet off the table, causing the feline warrior to spill noodles over himself. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I was just..."

"I told you to keep an eye on Christie!" He growled, smashing a fist down on one of the monitors. Fury started to scramble to his feet.

"But...but...she's in disguise! She's at the fair!" Fury reminded him. "It'll be ages yet before the Rangers figure anything out, I was just..."

"Just lazing around on the ship like you seem to be doing all the time these days?" Poisandra teased him as she came closer. "Come to think of it, you really haven't spent all that much time off the ship since you came back from New Zealand..."

"What are you trying to say witch?" Fury asked her.

"Be careful how you address my Sweet!" Sledge warned him, pulling out his blaster. Fury backed up a little, realising he still hadn't turned down the power setting since he had threatened Heckyl. He backed up as he just pointed to the screens.

"She's creating chaos; she's doing exactly what she was meant to!" Fury protested. "She doesn't need supervision for that!"

"Really?" Poisandra asked, pointing to another monitor. Fury just gulped as he saw the Red and Pink Rangers locked in a desperate battle with Christie in her true form. "It looks to me like she took a little wander when you let her off her leash."

"Master Sledge I..."

"SHE'S GOING TO GIVE THE GAME AWAY!" Sledge roared. "Get down there and get her back on her leash NOW!"

Fury immediately scrambled to leave the room, heading for a transport pod. Christie had managed to mess this up in a big way! It was unlikely any of them would forget the trouble she caused the last time!

Over in the Dino Bite Cafe, Kendall had moved from her office to the cafe to continue her work. Riley had taken a break from searching for stories of heroism from the local area to start training, and Kendall had found the racket he was making far too distracting. The practice dummy he and Ivan were using whenever they weren't sparring was well past its best and they kept hassling her to replace it, but with its protection wearing thin, they were essentially striking the metal frame. She had enough of a headache as it was, and could live without Riley making it any worse. Knowing that the lunch rush was now over, she was essentially in the cafe alone. She took a sip of her coffee as Ivan came over to her, with his mop in his hand, cleaning the floors.

"So, how goes the search for our new Ranger?" He asked her. Kendall just humphed and shook her head in exasperation.

"It's not going well at all." She grumbled. "Focussing purely on people who have performed heroic acts and who are close enough to make them practical candidates really isn't narrowing things down. Koda said he'd check Alessandra...I kind of couldn't really say no since we'd already tried Margaret and Allison."

"Yes well, even in my day it was a difficult search." He admitted. Kendall just looked to him.

"I thought you said all you had to do was go to the local tavern." Kendall teased him a little. Ivan just sucked his teeth, being reminded of his own boasts back in the early days of his tenure on the team.

"Well, it was certainly simple enough to find people to fill a retinue that way. Plenty of people were willing to sign on for some ale and a few coins." Ivan admitted sagely. "Sadly though, those worthy of joining the Knights of Zandar were very rare."

"I suppose it's always been difficult to find good recruits." Kendall stated as Erica came over, carrying a ladder. She seemed to pause as she heard this. Kendall realised she had only heard the tail end of the conversation. "We weren't talking about you; you don't need to worry Erica."

"OK...I'm just...replacing this bulb. It's been blinking." She responded. "Would you mind holding the ladder Ivan?"

"Ivan...wasn't Chase meant to be on today?" Kendall asked as he held the ladder and Erica started to climb up.

"I agreed to cover for him so he and Allison could go on their weekend break together." Ivan told her. "Tyler and Shelby went to the park for a picnic..."

"They went for a picnic?" Kendall asked him.

"It has been planned for a while..."

"Yeah, I just thought Shelby would want to be at home today." Kendall told him. He just looked confused. "She got a lot of mail here today, a lot of grant application forms."

"You read her mail?" Ivan asked. "Even in my day that was considered impolite."

"I know application forms when I see them Ivan, I've applied for more than a few myself." She reminded him. "Waste of bloody time around here, I've been in front of most of the grant committees here and...let's just say they have a select 'type' of person they tend to award them to."

She paused for a moment as she thought about this.

"What is it?" He asked her.

"I was just thinking...most of these grants. They usually take months to send out the forms...and all of these arrived at the museum today." Kendall said, thinking about the mail. "Shelby had been asking me for advice on grants to apply for but...that was only within the last couple of weeks. And...Koda did get his burger..."

She looked to Ivan, seeing the look on his face as she considered this. It seemed silly, but there was an annoying thought in the back of her mind, like a little itch in her brain that she couldn't shake. She'd seen a lot of bizarre things since she had begun her tenure on the team. Hell, she had a caveman literally living in the basement!

"Ivan, when we were at the fair...what did you wish for?" She asked him. He just sighed and shrugged.

"I wished for what any gentleman wishes for." He told her. "To save a damsel in distress."

Pretty much exactly on cue, Erica slipped and fell off the ladder, screaming as she went. Ivan dropped the mop instinctively and caught her with barely a thought. She looked up to him from his arms, smiling as he put her down.

"Ivan, you really are my knight in shining armour!" She said a little breathlessly, putting her hand over her heart. It was still beating a little quickly after the surprise of her fall.

"You are quite welcome." Ivan told her, before pointing to the kitchen. "Now, would you mind cleaning the grill?"

"Yeah, anything." She said as she ran in the direction of the kitchen. Kendall saw this and the itch in her brain came back far more fiercely than before. She was never superstitious, but she had seen so many bizarre things, and there were an awful lot of coincidences...that was when a thought occurred to her. Sledge had sent a monster that could grant wishes before, and she knew that he had the capability now to bring monsters back to life...was it possible that he had done so? She remembered all too well when that had happened, Chase still had a picture on his cell phone of her when she had been shrunk to the size of a Barbie doll wearing a wedding dress and standing beside a Ken doll in a tux! It seemed like there were way too many coincidences all at once, but...was it possible he had inadvertently given them exactly what they needed? Christie's wishes all came true, just not the way they expected. It was risky to think about if it was true, but...if she was specific...VERY specific in the wording of how she phrased her wish...She stared to hurriedly gather her things together.

"Where are you going?" He asked her.

"I have a...really crazy idea!" Kendall told him. "Believe me, if I told you, you'd only try to talk me out of it, but if this works...I think I've found our Purple!"

As she left, Ivan just shrugged his shoulders, before going back to work. It was a moment later that Koda was brought into the restaurant, wearing a long dressing gown and groaning, with Alessandra helping him.

"A new look Koda?" Ivan asked him.

"He no feel well...have 'accident' training." Alessandra told him. "I take him to basement."

"By all means." Ivan said, gesturing to her to do so. Koda just continued to groan as he left.

In the park, Tyler and Shelby were still battling Christie. Tyler was thrown into the duck pond by one of her attacks, leaving her alone with Shelby.

"Christie, why are you doing this?" She yelled at her. "We were friends!"

"Friends?" Christie laughed derisively. "You Rangers have done nothing but destroy my fellow inmates for months!"

"We only destroyed them when they left us no choice!" Shelby told her. "People's lives were at stake!"

"You destroyed ME!" Christie screamed at her. "Now I get to return the favour!"

They were both thrown to the ground by a blast as Fury arrived. Before she could get up, he kicked Shelby, sending her flying into the pond. Christie just glared at him.

"What did you do THAT for?" She yelled.

"I told you to stay at the fair!" He responded.

"I got bored!" She responded in an offhand way. Fury just grabbed her and started dragging her.

"If you don't get back to the fair, I'll give you something that'll REALLY keep your attention!" He warned her. By the time Shelby and Tyler got back out of the pond, Fury and Christie were gone.

"Son of a BITCH!" Tyler screamed. "He's gone!"

"He?" Shelby asked.

"My dad!" He responded. "I finally see him after all these years and thanks to her..."

"Tyler, wait." Shelby stated. "You saw your dad...and then we run into Christie? By any chance did you...?"

"Wait...the fair!" Tyler yelled as he suddenly caught onto what Shelby was thinking. "I wished to find my dad!"

"Tyler...we need to stop her before anyone else makes any wishes!" Shelby responded. She pulled out her communicator. "Ms Morgan...Ms Morgan? Damn it, my communicator is damaged!"

"Mine too." Tyler replied as he tried his communicator. "I guess we know they really are only water resistant to 50 metres. The middle of that lake had to be much deeper than that."

"We need to get to that fair now!" Shelby replied as they started running as fast as they could.

Over in San Angeles, Chase and Allison had arrived, seeing the hotel at the end of the street. They both looked up as the rain suddenly stopped.

"Great, that's just typical." She grumbled. Chase put his arm around her as they got closer.

"Don't worry, just think. In only a few more minutes, we'll be in the hotel, with a nice, warm spa, champagne and..."

"And a closed hotel?" Allison asked. Chase looked up and saw what Allison was talking about. The door was closed, and there were wooden bars nailed up over it. There was a sign marking the building as closed.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Chase said as he ran to the door and inspected the sign. "It's a foreclosure notice; it looks like the owners haven't been paying their taxes since...well...ever!"

"When did this happen?" She asked.

"The notice went up last week." Chase responded. "I don't believe this!"

He let out a huge yell and kicked the door, but completely underestimated his strength...and overestimated how sturdy the door was! It flew in completely off its hinges. Chase and Allison just looked in, unable to believe what they were seeing. The furniture inside was chipped and worn, the carpets were patchy and while it was clear it had been a luxury resort at one time, it looked like it hadn't been maintained properly in years.

"Wow, old father time really took a baseball bat to this place!" Allison commented. "I'm guessing those pictures from the website are pretty old."

"I'd say so." Chase agreed. Just then, they heard a siren, and saw some flashing lights. Chase turned in time to see a police cruiser pulling up.

"Oh, this isn't good." Allison commented. Chase just smiled.

"No, things are looking up." He replied as he walked towards them. "Hello officer..."

"Stay where you are sir!" One of the cops told him as they started to approach. Chase just looked confused. "What are you doing here?"

"I came here with my girlfriend to check in..."

"To a closed hotel?" The other cop asked him. He just shrugged.

"I didn't know it was closed until I got here." Chase told him honestly. Allison just face-palmed.

"Can we see some identification sir?" One of them asked.

"Identification?" He asked as Allison came up to his side.

"Um...Chase, we ARE standing outside a closed hotel." She reminded him. "And you did kind of just kick the door in."

"Wait, you think...?" Chase said as the penny finally dropped. While the hotel was closed, it had only closed recently, meaning most of the fixtures and fittings were still inside! It was a reasonably tempting target for the opportunistic thief! He held up his hands. "Oh, no, no, no...we were just..."

"Keep your hands where I can see them sir." One of the officers warned him. "Can I see some identification?"

"I think my wallet is in my bag..."

"He's going for the bag!" One of the officers screamed as he pulled out his tazer. Before Chase knew what was going on, he was on the floor, jerking around as the charge went through him. Allison dropped her bag and held up her hands.

"We don't have any weapons, I swear!" She protested. The cops came over, cuffing Chase, before approaching her. Allison didn't try to resist as they cuffed her too.

"You're under arrest on suspicion of burglary." The officer told her. "Nicely done genius, you got arrested on a Friday. The next arraignment is Monday morning. Hope you were looking forward to a nice weekend alone together!"

"Not like this." Allison muttered as he snapped the handcuffs shut.

Back at the museum, Riley was checking something out on the computer when Koda let out a huge groan. Alessandra was still playing nursemaid as she sat with him, looking to him sympathetically.

"Koda, do you mind?" Riley asked him. Ivan arrived in the cave, putting his Energem away. Riley noticed him grimace in pain as he put his coat on. "What happened to you?"

"I think I may have injured my back saving Erica from a nasty fall." Ivan complained. "It really is quite embarrassing. I've done much more dangerous things and walked away with nary a scratch. Now I make a wish..."

"Wait, what did you say?" Riley asked him.

"I wished to save a damsel in distress." Ivan told him. He was completely ignorant of Riley's thoughts as he heard this. Ivan had yet to join the team when they faced Christie the first time. "What did I say?"

"Koda, you got sick after you ate that burger, the one you wished for right?" Riley asked. Koda just groaned and nodded as a huge rumbling sound came from his stomach. "Sledge can bring back monsters now remember?"

"Christie!" Koda said as he recalled the incident.

"Who is Christie?" Ivan asked in response.

"Christie was a monster who granted wishes." Riley told him. "Only she granted them in a way that meant you got a nasty surprise into the bargain."

"Oh, then we may just have a problem." Ivan responded. "Ms Morgan...she was asking about the wishes we made, and then she declared she had a plan."

"What kind of plan?" Riley asked.

"I believe her exact words were that it was crazy and if we knew we would try to talk her out of it." Ivan responded. Riley snatched his Energem out of its housing.

"Ivan, try and contact Shelby and Tyler. Koda, contact Phillipe. I'll call Chase!" Riley told them. "We've got to stop Ms Morgan and fast!"

With that, they all ran from the lab, snatching up their Energems while they frantically tried to get in contact with their friends to warn them to be careful of what they wished.

In the hospital, Phillipe was sitting by Margaret's bedside when his communicator went off. The nurse in the room handing a painkiller to Margaret just glared at him.

"I'm afraid cell phones aren't allowed in here." She told him. "I'm afraid that applies to you too Your Highness."

Phillipe put his hand in his pocket, turning off his communicator. As the doctor arrived, dismissing the nurse, Margaret just looked to him.

"Alright, I think we can safely say my ankle is broken." She told the doctor, unable to shake the thought that Phillipe's communicator going off was probably more important than her stupid ankle. "So you're here to apply a cast? Phillipe doesn't need to be here for..."

"I'm afraid...that isn't all we're concerned about." The doctor told her. Margaret just looked to him.

"Look, I stepped on a curb wrong, and my ankle went over...it's embarrassing but it happens." She told him. "Can we..."

"I have to ask, how has your health been generally." He asked her. She just looked confused. "Have you experienced any fatigue lately? Nausea?"

"I work 16 or more hours a day, it's a surprise when I'm not tired." Margaret told him. "And yeah, I've been nauseous, I don't do well in hot weather. I'm from Zandar! I probably just have heat stroke!"

"Well, I'm afraid it may be something more than that." The doctor told her. "We found an...abnormality with your x-ray."

"Abnormality?" Phillipe asked. The doctor looked to Margaret, aware he couldn't say anything in front of Phillipe without her consent. She just sighed.

"Go ahead, I tell him everything anyway." She responded. The doctor put up the X-ray against a light. They both looked to it.

"There's a growth on your bone, just here in the lower region of your shin." He began. Margaret suddenly gripped Phillipe's hand tighter. "What...what kind of growth?"

"The thing is, we won't know until we take a closer look, but...we believe it's a tumour." He told her. "We'll need to schedule a procedure to go in and take a closer look to be sure..."

"Of course, anything that's needed." Phillipe told him without hesitation. The doctor started to talk to explain what was going to happen, but Margaret could hear nothing that made any sense. She held Phillipe's hand as he remained by her side, but her mind had already checked out. The one and only thing she could think of was the word tumour. She was no doctor, but she didn't need to be to know what that meant.


	13. An Unexpected Hero

Kendall arrived at the fair, and paused for a moment as she got there. Her plan was risky, she knew that from the moment she conceived it, which was exactly why she hadn't told Ivan what she was intending to do.

It was an insane plan; it was so insane that if she wasn't so desperate to find a suitable Purple Ranger, she would never have considered it. If she had the slightest inkling that one of her Rangers had planned something so risky, she wouldn't even try to talk them out of it; she'd have chained them up in her lab and beaten some sense into them! It was a testament to how desperate she was that she was even contemplating this.

She didn't know for a fact, but she now strongly suspected that the wish-card vendor was Christie, the monster that had plagued them before. The memories were all still fresh in her mind. She still had memories of being no larger than a Barbie doll because Shelby had wished she "wouldn't look down on her." Christie's last rampage had left the team in disarray and had been one of the times they had come closest to a complete and total defeat. However, there was one ray of hope in this whole debacle. While it was dangerous, Christie's power DID actually work! Her wishes did come true, even if she was somewhat of a troll about how she went about granting it.

She steeled herself and started to make her way through the crowd, ignoring the other performers and games. She bumped into a man as she was going.

"Excuse me." She said, looking to the bizarrely-dressed man. He looked like he'd either dressed in the dark, or walked out of a Dr Who convention! He was wearing a pinstripe suit, with a brightly-coloured cravat and a long coat. He flashed a bright smile from beneath his distinctive hairstyle with a shock of aquamarine hair.

"But of course, pretty lady." He responded, allowing her to pass. Kendall went on her way, at which Heckyl reached into his coat, pulling out the plaque, verifying Kendall's identity. He put the plaque away and made sure to stick close by. In the meantime, he turned his attention to the three-card Monte table before him.

"I'll put five hundred dollars on...this one." Heckyl stated, picking up the card. His hand glowed for a moment before he revealed to the horror of the man running the game that he had picked up the red card.

"But...but..." Heckyl just reached into his cash tin, taking out his winnings, pretty much the guy's whole day's takings and put it into his pocket before walking away. The other man at the table came to his colleague's side.

"How did he do that?" He asked. "I thought you said you palmed the red card!"

"I did, all of them are black!" The other guy protested, showing him the red card up his sleeve. "He must have palmed a red card onto the table!"

"So go and get our money back!" His colleague screamed.

"How?" He demanded. "If I tell him how I know he cheated, we'd have to admit the game is rigged!"

Kendall was too far away to hear their argument by now, but she didn't care anyway. She got to the table, finding the lady just coming out of her tent, straightening out her clothing, like she was only just arriving back. Kendall took one last, deep breath and made her way to the table.

"You were here earlier weren't you?" Christie asked, seeing Kendall. "If I remember rightly, you were something of a sceptic."

"I suppose that's accurate." Kendall responded. "But I saw some things happen to my friends that kind of...well...could I have a card please?"

"Of course...here, have this purple one." Christie told her. As she reached for the card, Kendall noticed the glowing aquamarine crystal tucked into her clothing. She smiled, her suspicion was confirmed. This was indeed Christie, whatever Kendall wished for, she would grant. However, knowing how the monster's wishes generally went, she had to ensure there were no nasty surprises. She was no lawyer, but she had dealt with enough lawyers and contracts to know how vitally important language was. She needed to ensure that whatever she wrote had no room for misinterpretation or loopholes. She took a pencil and started to write.

In San Angeles, Chase was having his fingerprints taken while an officer read him his Miranda Rights.

"Do you understand these rights as they've been read to you?" He asked. Chase just nodded his head in understanding.

"Can I have my phone call now?" He asked. The cop just snorted.

"You've been watching too many movies kid." He declared. "We have to contact an attorney for you, that is true. Your attorney can then contact whoever you want, but phone calls are a privilege that we can allow or deny as we see fit."*

"Wait, so...we can't call home?" Chase asked. "If we could call Ms Morgan..."

"So you can sort out your alibi? Forget it kid!" The cop told him. "You need to wait until your attorney arrives."

"When will that be?" Allison demanded as she wiped the ink off her fingers with a paper towel.

"Well, legal aid guys tend to be pretty busy, especially on the weekend." He told them. "The court-appointed guy should be here by tomorrow morning."

"TOMORROW?" They yelled together. The cop then showed them to the holding cells. They were just a pair of barred cages in the back, with what could laughably be called a "bed", and a stainless steel contraption that looked more like a torture device than a toilet. Chase went in first, but as Allison was about to go in with him, the cop stopped her.

"Whoa, where do you think you're going?" He asked her.

"I was going into the cell..."

"You're next door." He told her. "This isn't a hotel room missy."

"Oh come ON!" Chase protested. "Do you really think we feel like...you know...here?"

The cop just ignored him, pointing to the cell next door. Allison just rolled her eyes and went to the other cell, at which he locked the door behind them. Chase just looked to the cop as he was about to leave.

"Hey, wait a minute!" He called out. "You said we're going to be here all night. What are we meant to do for all that time?"

"One minute." He told them, heading out the room. He came back a moment later with a couple of old, well-thumbed magazines and a deck of cards, tossing them into Chase's cell. "Have fun."

As he left, Chase checked through the magazines.

"So, do you want a three-year-old gardening magazine, a four-year-old car magazine or a puzzle book...with most of the puzzles completed." He asked her.

"Just hand through the cards." She told him, taking the cards from him. She dragged her bed to the side of the cell between the two of them, and sat cross-legged on the bed, beginning to shuffle the deck. "Idiot's delight?"

"Look, I know this isn't exactly the best date..."

"It's a game you doofus!" She told him. He smiled as he dragged his bed over to the bars and sat down.

"So, how do we play?" He asked her.

Back in Amber Beach, Tyler, Shelby, Ivan, Riley and Koda were all running for the fair. They were a little bit away when they all stopped to catch their breath.

"I can't reach Ms Morgan, she's not answering." Tyler told them.

"No answer from Chase either." Riley grumbled. "No doubt he and Allison are too busy having fun at the hotel. Probably in the hot tub as we speak."

"I couldn't get Phillipe either, his communicator is off." Shelby snapped. "Does he NOT get the whole Ranger thing? You NEVER turn your communicator off! What could he be doing that's so damned important?"

"We're nearly there." Ivan told them. "Come, we just need to cross this road!"

As they got closer, the crossing guard saw them, and his face fell as he recognised Ivan. He threw his sign at Ivan before running off screaming. Tyler just glared at him.

"You have kind of a rep around here don't you?" He asked. Ivan just sighed.

"It appears my retinue still hold some resentment over what happened." Ivan told them. Shelby then pointed to the fair across the road.

"There she is!" Shelby yelled as they waited for a gap in the traffic. "MS MORGAN!"

Kendall was standing at the booth, still writing out her card. There was something of a queue forming behind her, and people were starting to look a little impatient. Christie was sitting with her elbow resting on the table, her face resting on her hand as she watched Kendall writing.

"Are you nearly done yet?" She grumbled as she started to get impatient.

"I'm still writing." Kendall told her as she used the eraser to correct something. She was already on the second side of the card. She looked across the road, seeing the Rangers yelling and frantically waving to attract Kendall's attention. She knew she didn't have long before Kendall would notice. Christie just let out a groan.

"Oh for goodness' sake, would you just hurry up and make a wish already?" She snapped. Kendall just smiled as he folded up her card, holding it a little above the slot in the box.

"I just wanted to ensure I was very precise about my wish." Kendall told her with a little smirk. "I wouldn't want any nasty surprises, would I...Christie?"

She slid the card into the box, at which there was a little flash of light, confirming Christie's power had worked.

"You...you knew?" She shrieked. Kendall just nodded in response.

"Now it's time to go and find my Purple Ranger." She told her. "Thank Sledge for me!"

With that, she headed towards the Rangers, making her way towards the road. In a fit of rage, Christie turned into her true form and fired a blast at Kendall, sending her flying into the middle of the road. People started screaming and ran in all directions as Christie revealed herself.

"MS MORGAN!" Shelby screamed as the Rangers saw her in the middle of the street, completely dazed and confused, trying to get slowly to her feet as Christie advanced on them. With so many people around, they couldn't morph; they were bound to be seen. They could only watch as a car came speeding around the corner, heading straight for Kendall. Before they knew what was happening though, someone sprinted right into the middle of the street, scooping her up in his arms and spinning away, only missing ending up as a hood ornament by millimetres. The driver was already disappearing down the end of the street by the time Kendall managed to regain enough composure to realise where she was. She was now crouched down behind a car, in the arms of the stranger she had bumped into earlier.

"You...you could have been hit!" Kendall exclaimed. "You risked your life to save me...thank you!"

"You are very welcome, pretty lady." Heckyl told her with a flash of a perfect, bright smile. He raised Kendall up, allowing her to get back onto her feet as he inspected her.

Kendall could remember seeing him before, and wondered if the guy had fully-functioning eyesight given his bizarre dress sense. However, she could hardly deny his heroic actions. The car was going way too fast, and would easily have killed both of them! He had risked his life to save her.

"Now that I know you'll be alright, I need to be going." He said, straightening his collar. This was all Kendall needed. She had made the wish, and within seconds, a man had saved her life, and he wanted nothing in return from her! The Rangers gathered around her.

"Ms Morgan, are you alright?" Tyler asked.

"Yes, I'm fine." Kendall told them, looking to Koda. She quickly went into his pocket, pulling out the Purple Energem. "Excuse me, sir!"

"Yes?" Heckyl asked as he turned back towards her. Kendall stood before him nervously.

"Look, I know we just met and...I know this sounds strange, but...I'd really like you to hold something for me." She told him, presenting the Purple Energem to him. Heckyl smiled seeing this. This was what he had come for! He was trying to think of a way to steal the Energem from them, and yet now, Kendall was literally ready to just hand it over!

"Well, what is it?" He asked her. As he reached out for it though, Christie blasted the Energem from her hand. Heckyl dragged Kendall back behind a car as the Rangers all headed to find somewhere out of sight to morph. Kendall could only watch in horror as Fury picked up the Purple Energem.

"Thanks for this!" Fury taunted her. "Christie! You're on your own!"

Heckyl started to power up a blast in his hand, but he looked aside, seeing that Kendall was still there. He might have lost the Purple Energem, but there were still others to get.

"I can't reveal who I am." He muttered under his breath, before he grabbed Kendall. "Come on pretty lady, it's time we were getting out of here!"

"But..."

"Come on!" He beckoned her. "Look, the Rangers are here! While the monster's distracted, let's get out of here!"

Kendall didn't want to leave, but she didn't really have any excuse to stay. It was a perfectly reasonable reaction for people to run for their lives when monsters showed up. Seeing that the Rangers had found somewhere out of sight to morph and return to take on Christie, she didn't have much choice but to go with the mysterious stranger.

In the hospital, Phillipe was sitting in the waiting area, while Margaret was in the operating room. They had managed to schedule a test very quickly, likely taking into account Phillipe's position as an Ambassador, and also the fact he had recently funded an entire new wing being built into their decision to see Margaret as soon as possible.

He took a sip of what was laughably called coffee from the machine as he waited for any kind of word from the surgeon. He didn't know what to do right now. He had already read through every magazine at least four times. He couldn't have cared less which tinsel town celebrities were getting married or divorced or sued for whatever. All he could think about was Margaret.

"And in breaking news, the Rangers are once again battling for the city." He heard a news bulletin on the television say as he waited for word. He looked to the screen that a number of other people were watching. "Over at the annual fair, a monster showed up, leading to a deadly showdown! Our in-the-field reporters are just getting into position..."

Phillipe pulled his communicator out of his pocket and realised he had switched it off. This must be what the others were trying to call him about! He gathered up his jacket, but before he could go, a doctor came out of the operating room.

"Your Highness." He greeted Phillipe. The Graphite Ranger just put down his jacket, looking to the man.

"What's happening?" Phillipe asked him.

"We're just moving Margaret to the recovery room now." He told him. "Do you have time to talk?"

"I..." Phillipe was about to say something, but he quickly thought about it. He knew he had made a commitment to the Rangers, but as he was about to excuse himself to go, he found himself instead thinking of only one thing. "How is she?"

"I'm afraid it'll be a while before we know exactly what's going on, but it is pretty clear that the growth is a tumour." The doctor told him. "We're not sure if it's malignant or not, but the lab should be able to tell us in time."

"I...I see." Phillipe said as he heard this.

"Whatever happens, she's going to need a lot of support right now." The doctor assured him. "But I would say that you should prepare for the worst."

"I understand completely." Phillipe responded as he saw them wheeling the stretcher carrying Margaret towards the recovery room. He pulled out his communicator, and then towards Margaret as he tried to make the most difficult decision of his life. It turned out not to be so difficult after all. There was only one choice to be made.


	14. The Missing Energem

Kendall was being dragged down the road by the mysterious stranger. So far, she didn't even know his name, but he had grabbed her and started running as soon as the Rangers showed up. She couldn't really stop him without arousing suspicion; it was pretty much the expected reaction of any right-thinking person when monsters showed up in the city. There wasn't too much she could do to help in the field, but just by habit she didn't generally run off as soon as the action started if she was already out here.

"I think...this...should be...far...enough." Heckyl said as he doubled over and started trying to catch his breath. Kendall made a point of doing the same. While she didn't have the benefit of an Energem, she did make an effort to work on her conditioning to be ready for action. Heckyl looked to her, approaching her slowly. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Kendall responded through her breaths. "A couple of scrapes and bruises, but it's nothing that I can't deal with when I get back to work."

"Would you like me to take a look?" He asked her. "I could always..."

"No, thank you." Kendall assured him. "I'm more embarrassed than anything else."

"Embarassed?" He asked her.

"I don't make a habit of playing in traffic." Kendall assured him. Heckyl just chuckled, flashing a bright smile.

"I should think you don't make a habit of being blasted by monsters either." He responded. Kendall couldn't help smiling. If only he knew. She noticed a large tattoo on the side of his neck, in a kind of aquamarine colour.

"That's an interesting tattoo." She said, inspecting it thoughtfully. "Is it Mayan? Aztec?"

"It's...something I thought was a good idea in my youth." Heckyl replied, covering it with his hand. It was only then that Kendall noticed some blood on his wrist. Because of his clothing, she hadn't been able to see if he was hurt.

"You're hurt!" She called out. "Come with me, I have a first-aid kit at work..."

"No, thank you, it's nothing really." He told her.

"Please, I'd really like to take a look, maybe get you a coffee." She responded. "It's the least I can do. You did stop me becoming a greasy spot on Main Street."

"I really need to be going. My ride is not far from here." He said. There was a chime coming from his pocket, at which he pulled out his pocket watch, seeming to stop just short of opening it to check it. He flicked a thumb over his shoulder. "Though if you'd like, I might take a rain-check on that coffee. I'm kind of late for something."

"Of course." Kendall answered, thinking he must have set an alarm for an appointment. Pulling out her business card and handing it to him. "Amber Beach Dinosaur Museum, go in and ask for me."

"Museum director! Very impressive Dr Morgan." He replied.

"It's...MS Morgan actually." She replied, looking a little sheepish. "I never did get around to that PhD."

"Well I didn't either." Heckyl joked lightly, raising the business card. "I'll keep a hold of this. I'll see you later, Pretty Lady."

As he left, Kendall smiled for a moment, watching him go, having to shake herself back to thoughts. Her team was still locked in battle, and here she was concentrating on this stranger? He seemed to fit the bill for the Purple Ranger, but without the Energem she supposed it was something that would have to wait. Right now, the Rangers still had a dangerous monster to deal with. Realising she wasn't far from the museum, she headed off to get to her lab.

Over in San Angeles, Allison and Chase were sitting just on opposite sides of the bars, facing each other. Allison narrowed her eyes as they prepared for their next move.

"GO!" She yelled. They both took a card, holding it, facing outward to their forehead. It was a simple, yet entertaining game termed 'Idiot's Delight'. The objective was simple. By holding the card facing outward to their forehead, each player was unable to see their OWN card, but they could see their opponents' cards. The objective was simply to look at everyone else's card and decide if they believed their card was a higher or lower value. Both she and Chase were laughing as they had been doing this for a while, and were getting a little too into it given the lack of anything else to do in the holding cells.

"Oh, you are in so much trouble." Chase teased her, seeing the three of diamonds on her forehead. She giggled.

"You really think so? You are going down HARD Kiwi Boy!" She told him. They both looked to the cards, at which Chase groaned out loud, seeing he had the two of clubs. Allison threw up her hands in triumph and cheered.

"Australia wins again!" She teased him.

"I guess you have to win at something. Everyone knows we kick your arse at Rugby." Chase replied as they put the cards back. Allison started shuffling the deck as a cop came into the room, carrying some sandwiches and a couple of juice boxes.

"Oh, it's about time I'm starving!" Chase responded as he handed them through. He looked to the "meal" with a little disgust. "Is this it?"

"I'm the only one here. Hartford is hosting a charity football game in the city and all our man-power is there." He told them. "I can't leave the desk to make anything so this will have to do."

"Hartford...ANDREW Hartford?" Chase asked him. The cop just snorted.

"You know any other Hartfords in San Angeles?" He replied. Chase tossed the food onto his bed.

"Get me my phone, let me make a call!" He replied. "If you let me call Andrew Hartford..."

"Yeah, right, I'll let you do that. Is there anyone else you want to call?" He teased Chase. "Angelina Jolie perhaps? Maybe Stephen Hawking?"

"Come on man, just five minutes..."

"You're lucky I haven't smashed that damned phone! It hasn't stopped ringing all day!" The cop snapped at him. "It's been driving me nuts!"

"It's ringing?" Chase asked, suddenly looking worried. "Please, let me..."

"Look, settle down and there'll be another juice box before bed time." The cop warned him.

"Come on man, its important!" Chase rushed out, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"Hey, Chase, let it go!" Allison told him.

"But if my communicator is going off..."

"It's not like you can do anything about it in here is it?" Allison asked him. "I'm sure everyone will understand."

"I hope so." Chase grumbled, sitting down on his bed. "This is a pretty sucky break huh?"

"I don't know. It hasn't been that bad." She told him. "I mean...the accommodations aren't exactly what I was expecting and the food is a little less than Michelin Star but the company's good."

She reached through the bars, taking Chase's hand. He smiled as he felt her hand in his.

"I guess we did get to spend time together." He replied. "You really are amazing, you know that?"

"I definitely like to hear it." She told him as they leaned in, kissing each other between the bars. Chase took a deep breath as he looked to the sandwiches.

"So, what would the lady like, cheese and ham or corned beef?" Chase asked her.

"Corned beef." She replied.

At the site of the battle, Tyler, Riley, Koda, Ivan and Shelby were battling hard against Christie and a horde of viviks. Shelby fought viciously with Christie while her friends kept the Viviks off her.

"Christie, stop this!" Shelby screamed at her. "This is all down to Sledge! He was the one who kept you in that prison!"

"YOU'RE the ones that destroyed all of us! YOU'RE the ones that destroyed half of Sledge's cell blocks, sending his prisoners into space! They never did ANYTHING to you!"

She hacked at Shelby, causing the Pink Ranger to tumble away. Koda and Riley caught her, steadying her on her feet.

"Where the hell are Chase and Phillipe?" Riley complained.

"Phillipe no answer, is communicator off." Koda told him.

"Chase just keeps ringing out." Riley added. "I swear, if he's living it up in some Jacuzzi..."

"Perhaps this is a discussion we can have at a more convenient time?" Ivan suggested, cutting down a couple of his opponents.

"Guys, finish her off!" Tyler agreed, smashing down a few more viviks. Shelby looked hesitant.

"I...I..."

"Shelby, you can't be sentimental about this!" Tyler told her. "I know you liked Christie, but she's going to destroy everything!"

"I don't want..."

"Shelby, we've tried reasoning with her, it doesn't work!" Riley agreed. "You know there's only one thing we can do!"

"If I may interject a thought!" Ivan said as he held off three more viviks. "I don't claim to be the most knowledgeable in modern matters, but did you not say they were clones?"

"What does that matter?" Tyler asked him.

"So they're copies!" Ivan reasoned out. "Shelby, I know you don't want to do this but...that ISN'T your friend! Your friend was destroyed some time ago! That isn't Christie!"

Shelby just looked to the creature. Although it looked like Christie, she had to remind herself that Ivan was right. She had to remind herself that this monster had none of the qualities that she had liked about Christie. Wrench had stripped her of any and all reason and compassion with his torture. She looked to Riley and Koda.

"Give me your weapons." She told them. "Dino Steel! Ivan, can you give us some cover?"

"With pleasure milady!" Ivan told her, powering up three Dino Chargers in his Ptera Sabre. "Final STRIKE!"

He sent a thunderbolt out, which flashed so brightly it blinded Christie and caused her to howl in pain as it burned her. Shelby launched herself into the air with the Triple Spike.

"I'm really sorry Christie." Shelby stated as she came down. "Maybe THIS time you'll get some peace!"

She unleashed all the power she could, putting herself at risk of the backlash to ensure that this time, when Christie fell, there was nothing left for them to resurrect. She turned and looked to her team.

"Monster Ex..."

"Please, not this time." Shelby begged Tyler. He just nodded in agreement.

"Rest in Peace." He said as a replacement for his usual victory call. With that, the Rangers all turned and left, making their way back to the lab. There was no victory for them in Amber Beach this day. Having escaped with the Energem, this day belonged to Fury.

Over in the hospital, Margaret started to slowly come to, after her procedure. She felt like hell, and was still more than a little groggy from all the meds, but as she started to gain more awareness of her surroundings, she felt a hand in hers. Looking to the side of the bed, she smiled to see that Phillipe was there, having sat with her.

"Hey, you're here." She said weakly. Phillipe just nodded.

"There was nowhere else I'd be." He told her. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling like I need about four days of sleep." She told him. Phillipe just nodded in response.

"I suppose that's to be expected." He answered as he looked to her. "I want you to know, as soon as you're ready, I'll take you back to the Embassy. I'll have my doctors look after everything for you. You won't have to worry about a thing."

"Except for the cancer." She replied. Phillipe looked a little dejected to hear her talk like that. They knew the growth was a tumour, but they were still waiting to hear from the biopsy whether or not it had become malignant. He understood why, but he didn't want her to start thinking about all the terrible things that could possibly happen until they knew for sure they were facing them.

"I don't want you to worry about that. All I want you to think about is getting better." Phillipe told her. "I want you back up and about as soon as possible!"

"I don't think it really works that way." She said as she looked to him. Phillipe took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, I...I feel like I've failed you." He stated. Margaret just looked completely confused.

"How?" She asked him.

"According to the doctor, there were other signs." Phillipe replied. "The fatigue, the nausea...you must have...this must have been going on for months and I didn't notice..."

"Hey, you know I've never been one to cry off when I'm unwell." She reassured him. "I was sure I was just tired because I've been trying to keep up with you Mr Energem Bunny."

"But you were sick..."

"Phillipe, when you took that vacation in Barbados a few years back, I spent half my time with my head in the toilet." She chuckled. "The sun isn't my friend. I thought it was heat-stroke!"

"I still feel like I should have..."

"Phillipe, if anyone is to blame it's me. I should have told you if I wasn't well." She answered. "You didn't give me this tumour, and you sure as hell didn't ignore symptoms I never told you I had."

"Well from now on, I want to know if you have so much as a hang-nail!" Phillipe put down flatly. "I mean it Margaret! You are getting better, and that's all there is to it!"

"But..."

"NO BUTS!" Phillipe interrupted her sharply. "From now on, you are the number one priority! No arguments!"

Margaret smiled as she heard this. A doctor came into the room, and looked to Phillipe.

"I'm sorry Your Highness, but you'll really have to go." She told him. "Margaret really needs to rest, and we've already allowed you to exceed the visiting times by a considerable margin."

"I appreciate that. Of course I'll go." Phillipe told her. He squeezed Margaret's hand again as he got up. "I'll be back in a few hours, and I promise...I'll have the juiciest pineapple I can get my hands on."

"My favourite!" She responded. "You really know how to spoil a girl."

"You better get used to it." He answered. "Now, you get some rest. I'll be back as soon as I possibly can."

As he left the hospital, he turned his communicator. As soon as he did, it immediately started blaring. He answered it.

"Sorry, I..."

"Where the FUCK have you been?" Kendall yelled at him. "You NEVER turn off your communicator!"

"I was actually..."

"You know what? I don't want to hear it!" She reprimanded him. "Just get back to the lab! Maybe today won't be a total disaster after all!"

Phillipe knew he had missed a battle, but the way Kendall had reacted, he was sure that something much more serious had happened. He looked back to the hospital. While he regretted anything that happened in his absence, he couldn't feel like he had made the wrong choice. He started running in the direction of the museum, hoping that he could earn the forgiveness of his team.

Up on Sledge's ship, Wrench was making some adjustments to Sledge's blaster. The hulking bounty hunter was pacing like a caged animal, waiting for the adjustments to be made. Thanks to Fury, he finally had an Energem in his grasp!

"Is it done yet?" He roared, causing Wrench to fumble his tools.

"Please, have patience!" Wrench complained. "If I make even the slightest mistake, the power of the Energem could backfire on you and destroy you!"

"I'm sure you'd be all broken up about THAT happening." Sledge grumbled.

"You do still sign the pay checks." He whispered in a voice so low that Sledge couldn't hear him. "Just one more...I think this is it! Now, if I can just test it with..."

"GIVE IT HERE!" Sledge snapped, ripping the blaster from his grip. He turned to Fury, extending a hand. "The Energem!"

"Here." Fury replied, handing it over. Fury loaded it into the housing on the blaster.

"Master Sledge, please let me test it with a weaker power source first!" Wrench begged him. Sledge though, as usual, did not have the patience for such things. He powered up the blaster, seeing the display showing power levels off the scale for anything he had seen in it before. Wrench was relieved that this hadn't caused the whole thing to explode. Poisandra hopped on the spot, clapping in delight.

"Our very own Energem Blaster!" She giggled in delight. "What will we blow up first? How about the Pink Ranger? She's always stealing my colour!"

"No, the Red one, he's the leader!" Curio suggested.

"I think I have a suggestion." Fury chipped in as Heckyl arrived. The curious alien approached them, smiling.

"Ah, I see thanks to our plan you have an Energem!" Heckyl said as he came over to Sledge. "No need to thank me, let's just discuss what we intend to do next...partner."

"Partner?" Sledge responded, brushing Heckyl off. "You didn't do anything to bring this to me! Fury got the Energem!"

"We had a deal Sledge." Heckyl reminded him. Sledge levelled the blaster at him.

"We had a deal, one that you didn't fulfil." He reminded him. "Now, why should I need you?"

"Do it Sledgeums!" Poisandra egged him on. "Let's see what this blaster can do!"

"No! Not this close!" Wrench begged him. "We don't know yet how powerful it is!"

"You're going to shoot me Sledge? Heckyl asked him, walking up closer. "Go on. Let's see what it does. I'm sure it would be...amusing."

They stood, staring at each other, glaring into each other's eyes for a moment. As they stood, facing off, Fury could almost swear he saw something he never had in Sledge before. Sweat seemed to leak from him and run down the armour of his helmet. Heckyl smirked as he held up his hands and started to back away.

"Never mind. I know when I'm not wanted." He told them, turning and walking back towards his cell in the solitary block. He paused in the doorway. "Good luck, my time will come soon enough."

He went inside and sat down, while Wrench activated the lock. As the door closed, he just winked at Sledge.

"Soon enough." He repeated before the door slammed shut. Sledge held his blaster close and started to stroke it thoughtfully.

"One down, nine to go!" He stated.

"NINE?" Poisandra shrieked. Sledge realised what he had said and turned to see her looking completely livid. "You told me if we got an Energem we'd get married!"

"Poisandra..."

"You...you...FIBBER!" She screamed as she started to flail in a fit of temper. She stormed out of the room, at which Sledge rolled his eyes and followed her.

"Oh great, here we go." He responded, holstering his blaster. "Poisandra, my sweet, please wait!"

Meanwhile, down on Earth, in the museum basement, the team was assembled after the day's events. As he arrived, Phillipe walked towards the team, at which Kendall confronted him.

"Oh, so glad you could finally grace us with your presence Your Highness!" She sneered sarcastically. "What the HELL were you playing at!"

"I was..."

"Dude, we totally got played! Sledge put one of his monsters down and now...now he has the Purple Energem!" Riley told him. Phillipe was shocked as he heard this.

"He has?" Phillipe asked. "How?"

"It seems that the wish-cards at the fair actually worked." Ivan explained. "It was one of Sledge's monsters; she just was very selective about how she chose to grant them."

"The wishes...the wishes came true?" Phillipe asked. He couldn't help remembering that he had made a wish himself. He had to wonder how his wish would have been interpreted. He was brought back to the present as Kendall snapped her fingers.

"So what was so important that you decided not to bother helping your team in the battle?" Kendall asked him. He looked to the team sheepishly, knowing that he'd have to tell them.

"I was with Margaret." He told them. "I needed to take her to the hospital. She was hurt today, she broke her ankle jogging."

"Well...as sorry as I am to hear that, you can't do anything for her right now. The doctors can put a cast on without you there..."

"They found something else when they did the x-ray." He told them. "They found a tumour. I've been...with her."

The team fell silent for a moment. They still weren't happy, but it didn't feel like something they could really say anything about. Somehow criticising Phillipe for staying with Margaret moments after finding out she may have cancer didn't seem right.

"I...I'm sorry." Shelby replied. "Is she alright?"

"We're still not sure." Phillipe told her. "They need to analyse their results to know more."

"Let her know we're thinking about her." Riley told him, patting Phillipe's shoulder. "Now we just have to figure out what we're going to do about the Energem."

"Wait...where's Chase?" Phillipe asked them.

"We don't know." Kendall answered. "I've been trying his communicator all day..."

"Hello?" They finally heard Chase's voice say. They all clamoured around the computer.

"Chase?" Tyler asked him. "Why haven't you been answering?"

"Wait...where are you?" Shelby asked, noticing the background didn't look much like any hotel she had seen.

"I'm in jail." He stated.

"WHAT?" They chorused in response. Chase just sighed.

"It's...a long story, but we're in a cell here in San Angeles." He explained. "The desk officer was driven so crazy by the fact he couldn't stop the communicator ringing that he let us answer."

"Why are you in jail?" Riley asked.

"Long story." Chase answered. "Can you guys get us out of here?"

"I'll call my lawyer right away." Phillipe told them, pulling out his cell phone.

"Phillipe's dealing with it. Just do whatever his lawyer says and get back here." Kendall said, pulling off her glasses. "We've got a lot to deal with here."

As they hung up, Kendall looked to the team.

"I don't think I need to explain to you exactly how serious all this is." She told them. "Sledge now has an unbonded Energem in his grasp. Who knows what he'll do with it."

"I have a feeling we'll find out sooner than later." Ivan responded. "In my day, when a general had the position of strength, he attacked before his opponent had the chance to fortify his position. I imagine little has changed in military strategy."

"Then we have to change strategy." Riley answered, thinking about it. "We have to use..."

"Logic?" Tyler suggested. Riley just nodded.

"Until now, Sledge has always come down here, and we fight." Riley reminded them. "He comes here because he knows this is where he'll find us."

"So...?"

"So, we need to go to the one place he WON'T expect us to be." Riley put down, knowing that his suggestion would likely not be a popular one. "We don't give him the chance to dictate the pace of the next battle. We need to go to his ship."

"You want us to go to HIS SHIP?" Shelby asked him, looking at him like he was insane.

"No, he has a point." Tyler concluded. "It's the last thing he'll expect. We don't give him the chance to dictate when the next battle will be!"

"We'll need to wait until we can get Chase back, but we can take the Plesio Zord." Riley told them. "This is it guys...we're officially out of options."

"Alright, but we can't just go in all guns blazing." Kendall answered. "We need to think about this. We need a surprise attack, we need to stop him from even bringing the Energem into the battle, take it out before it's even a factor."

"The only question is how?" Tyler asked.

"Get some coffee on." Kendall replied. "We're all in for a long night."


	15. The Night Before

Wrench was in the ship, directing some viviks as he prepared for the following day's move. While Sledge was currently distracted with his latest little spat with his fiancée, everyone on the ship knew that now he had the Purple Energem in his possession, Sledge would be eager to press his momentum as soon as possible. Everyone knew that Sledge could be impulsive and quick to act, but he was far from stupid. If anything, he knew the strategic value of quick strikes. Now that the Rangers had taken the blow of losing an unbonded Energem, every minute they waited to act gave them more time to fortify their position, to prepare for an attack, or worse...to figure out a way to get the Energem back before they had a chance to use it!

Right now, Wrench was working on the Magna Beam controls. Fury came into the room, looking confused.

"Wrench, I saw some viviks transporting a whole bunch of chemicals that were marked as..." He paused as he saw Wrench standing beside the console, and strode over, grabbing Wrench and spinning him away from it. "What the devil are you doing?"

"Hey, can't you see I'm working here?" He protested.

"It's the eve of our biggest battle, when we can finally destroy the Rangers for good...and you're dismantling our MOST POWERFUL WEAPON?" He screamed at him. Wrench just glared back.

"You wouldn't even understand what I'm doing." Wrench sneered in response. "I'm converting this thing to be able to channel an Energem and turn it into a laser cannon! If you think putting an Energem in Sledge's blaster is impressive? How much more impressive do you think channelling it through the whole SHIP will be?"

Fury just growled a little, but he didn't really have an answer. He didn't have the technical know-how Wrench did. All he knew was that if Sledge came through and found the Magna Beam in pieces, there would be hell to pay!

"You can always complain to Sledge if you like." Wrench suggested. This didn't sound like an appealing option at all. Right now, he and Poisandra were still in the middle of a huge argument about the fact Sledge hadn't followed through on his promise to marry her as soon as he had an Energem. Fury had about as much intention of getting in the middle of that as he had diving into the sun!

"Just...make sure this is all cleaned up before Sledge sees it." Fury responded, before storming away, leaving Wrench to his work.

In the Dino Lab, Kendall was working on a new device, completely oblivious to the late hour. Everyone knew that now Sledge had the Purple Energem it was only a matter of time before he used it. They weren't sure HOW exactly he would use it, since it was unlikely he could use it to morph (which didn't stop Chase giving everyone frightening mental images of it with a sketch of sledge in a Purple Ranger suit!) but so much power left unchecked was never going to be good.

So far, Riley had come up with the only reasonable plan, to invade the ship before he had a chance to be the one to attack first, but there was still a lot of x-factors to account for. Once on the ship, the Rangers were painfully aware they would have to face pretty much everything Sledge had all at once! With so much going on, it was unlikely they'd have time to search for the Energem in the middle of a fire fight. With a lot to think about and prepare for, the Rangers had all gone their own way to prepare how they saw fit. For Kendall, she regressed to what she always did in such times...she was working in her lab.

In particular, she was working on a device that could detect an Energem and search for it unseen. Knowing the Rangers would be occupied, she needed some way to retrieve the Purple Energem undetected during the battle. She hoped that with enough confusion and surprise, they could snatch the Energem and escape the ship before Sledge realised what was going on. She had hoped that by keeping her mind occupied, she could ignore the nagging feeling that it was her fault the Energem was now in his hands.

She always knew it was a risky plan to try and use Christie's wishing powers against her, but she had hoped that with attention to detail, with a very strict and precise choice of words that she could avoid any surprises with how the wish for a Purple Ranger was granted. She couldn't help going over and over her wish in her mind, trying to find if there was any way that it could be interpreted in a way that would enable Sledge or one of his cronies to morph. It didn't dare thinking about.

She suddenly became aware of another presence in the lab. Everyone had left some time ago. Koda's show was that night, and as far as she knew, everyone else had left ages ago.

"Hello?" She asked, looking around. She couldn't see anyone, in the gloom. The lights were on around her work bench, but elsewhere, the lab was in pitch darkness. "Keeper, is that you?"

She still had no idea where Keeper went between his 'little visits.' He just literally disappeared. She had some theories, but with no information from him they went from alternate dimensions to meditating on a mountaintop somewhere to recharge his powers. Frankly none of them were entirely too ridiculous to contemplate while also sounding as equally unlikely. It was a mystery she just didn't have time for. When she didn't get an answer, she reached under her desk, pulling out a blaster and primed it.

"Hello?" She asked. "Who's there?" As she tried to find any sign of movement, and strained to hear anything, she flicked off the safety and placed her finger inside the trigger guard.

"Hi Miss Morgan." She heard a voice behind her say. She jumped in fright, almost pulling the trigger as she turned to see Leanne standing behind her. Leanne had joined the staff very recently, but having met Riley at the tournament, she already knew about the Rangers. It was kind of a benefit not having to worry about talking around her. "I thought you could use some coffee but...maybe not."

"Good GRIEF Leanne, you scared the life out of me!" Kendall responded, putting the safety catch back on. "What are you doing here? I thought you went with Riley..."

"He and Ivan went to do some sword practice." She sighed. "Believe me; growing up in the Mystic Realm, I've seen more than enough of that for a lifetime. I thought maybe I could help out here."

"It's kind of late." Kendall reminded her, checking her watch. Leanne just shrugged.

"My family's never really been bothered by late nights." She assured her, gesturing to the workbench. "I don't know anything about...well...any of this...but I do know how to make good coffee!"

"I guess I could use some mocha." Kendall replied. Leanne just smiled and started to head away, at which Kendall called out. "Hey, careful, the lights are..."

"Don't worry; I've always been able to see well in the dark." Leanne assured her, heading for the elevator. Kendall just turned back to her work, and started concentrating on her...fetch-device? Find-buggy? She still had no idea what to call it.

Over at the hospital, Phillipe arrived in the recovery room, finding Margaret still resting after her procedure. Phillipe was loathe to disturb her, but as he sat down, he couldn't help reaching out for her hand. As he took it gently, she started to stir and turned to look at him.

"I'm sorry I woke..."

"Don't be." She answered as she smiled at him. "You're still here?"

"There's nowhere else I'd be." He answered. A doctor came into the room, and saw Phillipe there. Seeing the look on his face, they knew what he was about to say.

"Don't call security." Margaret told him. "I...I want him here."

"It's most irregular Your Highness." The doctor told him. "I have some results to share with Margaret; I'm going to have to ask..."

"Please, I want him to stay." Margaret interrupted the doctor. "Anything you can say to me, you can say in front of Phillipe."

"Are you sure about that?" The doctor said. She just nodded. "I'm afraid it's not good news. We've analysed the tumour...I'm sorry to tell you that it is malignant."

"I...I have cancer?" Margaret stammered. She had already thought about the possibility, it was impossible not to, but now that she heard it out loud, now that it was confirmed, it felt like the floor fell out from under her. She was in freefall, and she couldn't even begin to see the ground.

"I'm afraid that's the case." The doctor told her sympathetically. "One of the symptoms is a weakening of the bone, which is what led to your ankle breaking. It might not seem like it now, but in a strange way, it was a good thing that happened. Because of that we've found out so early."

"It didn't feel much like it." Margaret grumbled.

"What are the treatment options?" Phillipe asked the doctor.

"There are a few treatment options available here..."

"Doctor, please know that anything that's needed, anything at all, experts, equipment, anything...just ask for it and you'll have it." Phillipe told him. "You have my word on that."

Margaret could only look to him, her heart beating a little faster as she heard this. She was still terrified, she knew how serious cancer could be, but hearing Phillipe pledging everything he had to her was only just short of everything she could hope for.

"Phillipe..."

"Margaret, know that all that matters right now is making you better." He assured her, squeezing her hand gently. "Doctor, please, tell us what the options are."

Over at an arena, Koda arrived far later than he was meant to. Because of the battles earlier in the day, he wasn't sure if he even would come, but since the team still didn't have much of a plan to speak of, they had all been told to go and prepare in the best way they could.

"Koda, where the hell have you been?" Karl yelled at him as he and Alessandra arrived. He glared at Alessandra. He wasn't happy she was late, but since she was in the main event, she still had some time before she was due. Koda was in the opening match. "Jack's going apeshit!"

"Sorry, I held up." Koda told him.

"Well get your arse in there and get changed, FAST!" He yelled at him. Koda and Alessandra ran into the changing room, where Jack was pacing impatiently. He tossed back some aspirin, chased down with some whisky from his hip flask, but as he saw them, he stormed over.

"Where the HELL have you been?" He yelled at Koda.

"Aspirin?" Alessandra asked. "You alright?"

"Took a shot to the head last night." Jack told her. "Kid, you're late!" The Blue Ranger just looked apologetic. He knew that Jack had spoken up for him and gotten Karl to take a chance on him on this match. "Can't you hear that? That's the Kollosal Koallition's entrance music! Just get changed, now!"

Koda hurriedly pulled off his shirt, and was about to pull off his shorts, but Jack stopped him as his entrance music kicked in.

"No time!" He told him, grabbing Koda.

"But...Kendall make tights..."

"There's no time! We're being announced!" Jack yelled at him as they got to the entrance. With Jack's music playing, they both got to the entrance, but Jack didn't stop to pose, instead running to the ring, which was surrounded by weapons. The match was a 'hardcore' match, meaning that they were legal, and people were expecting them to be used. Koda followed suit, running to the ring.

While Jack went after Eddie, Koda figured he was meant to keep Vinny at bay. He went after him, only to receive a hard punch across the face. VERY hard! Before he knew what was happening, the whole thing descended into a legitimate brawl. He already knew that Eddie and Vinny were questionable workers who often took liberties with their opponents to cover for their weaknesses as performers, but tonight he was in no mood to take their nonsense. Yelling loudly, he hit Vinny so hard he sent him straight to the mat. If they wanted a legit fight, they were going to get it!

In his apartment, Tyler was sitting with Chase and Allison.

"So I guess you really did get to spend a weekend together." Tyler chuckled as he heard Chase tell them about their disastrous weekend.

"Thankfully Phillipe's lawyer works weekends." Chase responded. "He contacted Andrew Hartford, and he called and told the cops I was there on his behalf."

"I know Christie was always a bit of a troll about how she granted wishes, but you know...I kind of enjoyed it." Allison said with a smile. "Sure, a nice stay in a hotel would have been nice, but...you just know this'll be a story we'll be telling in forty years' time."

"You know, that's what I love about you." Chase replied, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her onto his lap. "You always find a way to be right."

"I still can't believe that she granted all our wishes." Tyler responded as Shelby came in. The tone took a decidedly less jovial turn as he said this.

"Tyler, you can't be sure..."

"I wished to see my dad." Tyler reminded them. "I saw..."

"You saw someone who looks like him." Chase said. "Dude, do you know how many times I could swear I saw my mum or Chloe..."

"It was him!" Tyler interrupted him. "Shelby saw him too! She can tell you..."

"Tyler...I saw someone who looks like your dad DID." Shelby reminded him. "On the cover of a book that was printed over ten years ago!"

"But the wish..."

"You saw your dad." Chase told him. "At least...in a manner of speaking you did."

"It was HIM, I know it!" Tyler yelled defiantly. "Does Ivan look over 800 years old? Does Koda look like a fossil?"

"They have Energems..."

"Of all the things we've seen and done, would this really be the most bizarre thing we've seen?" Tyler asked them.

"Tyler, if it was your dad...why would he run away when you called him?" Shelby asked him.

"I...I don't know." Tyler responded. Chase just sighed as they looked between each other.

"Look, we know what we're up against tomorrow. We have to be in the right head space for that." Chase told him. "What happened at the park...we can investigate that thoroughly once we're done with that. I promise you we will."

"We all will." Shelby agreed. "But until then, we can't let anything get in the way of what we have to prepare for tomorrow."

Tyler wasn't happy that they had to let the trail go cold on what had been the biggest lead he'd had in years to find out what happened to his dad. No matter how illogical it seemed, he was certain it was his dad he had seen. However, he also knew that finding his dad was pointless if the Earth was destroyed in the meantime. He reluctantly nodded.

"Then we deal with Sledge first." Tyler told them. "But then, nothing stops me looking for dad."

"Nothing stops US looking for him." Shelby corrected him, gently kissing him. "And that isn't a wish, that was a promise."

Back at the arena, the 'match' had descended into little short of a human cock-fight! Jack and Eddie were already busted open hardway* and bleeding all over the mats outside as Jack was strangling him with a baseball bat.

Inside the ring, Koda and Vinny were creating the centrepiece of the bout. It was coming close to time, and so the referee had given them the signal to take it home. Koda had set up a table and dragged Vinny over towards it. The larger man fought with Koda to prevent what was happening, but with all his strength, Koda lifted him up over his head, and slammed him down through the table, sending splinters everywhere. Koda flopped down on top of him, and awaited the referee counting.

He was stunned though as Vinny kicked out! That was the planned finish! Koda glared at Vinny hatefully as he grabbed a length of chain and punched Koda full in the face with it wrapped around his fist. Koda ducked his next swing, before head-butting him as hard as he could, staggering the man.

He thought for a moment how to end the match, knowing that if Vinny didn't cooperate and take the three count, then he would have to find a way to MAKE him take the loss. As Vinny hit the ropes and staggered towards him, blood streaming from his nose, he had a random thought wondering what his friends would do. Opening his arms wide, he wrapped them around Vinny and picked him up off the ground, squeezing as hard as he could!

Vinny screamed out loud, and tried to pry Koda's arms off him, but as the grip tightened, he could swear he heard something cracking. Air was leaving his body at a worrying rate, and his face was turning red. With one last squeeze, he screamed out loud and had no option but to tap out! Koda dumped him on the ground to a huge cheer as the referee raised his hand.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, your winners, 'The Deer Hunter' Jack Malone, and Koda!" The ring announcer called out over the house mic. Jack came into the ring as Vinny rolled out to be helped to the back by Eddie.

"Kid, that is the first time in a LONG time I've ever seen someone use a bear hug as a legit finisher." Jack chuckled. Koda just smiled.

"Friends say my hugs too tight." Koda answered. "Vinny find out hard way."

"Anyway, let's go." Jack told him. "You still have to give Alessandra her makeover."

Koda smiled as the two men exited the ring and headed to the back, the crowd still chanting his name.

 **A/N:** The word marked with a * is a wrestling term. Normally when a wrestler bleeds in a match, it is intentional, they inflict the cut themselves with a hidden razor. If a cut is termed "Hardway" it means it is a legit injury, often caused by a mistake or carelessness.


	16. A Star Is Born

In the Dino Lab, Kendall was nearing completion on her...Energem Locator? She was still having a problem with the name, not that that was the biggest problem in the world, but the device itself was elegant enough in its simplicity. As an extra-large mocha appeared next to her, she let out a scream and nearly jumped clean through the ceiling.

"Damn it Leanne, you really have to stop doing that!" Kendall yelled at her, holding her hand to her chest as her heart beat faster. "What the hell are you? Some kind of ninja?"

"That's so Blue Bay Harbour. I'm a Briarwood girl." Leanne reminded her, taking a sip of her own drink. "Sorry, I always have been light on my feet. I can try stomping or...playing a kazoo when I enter the room if you'd like."

"No thanks." Kendall replied, taking a drink of her mocha. "I live across the hall from the guys. When they come home it sounds like a wildebeest stampede out in the hall. I guess it's a nice change of pace."

"So, is this nearly done?" She asked, gesturing to the device. Kendall just nodded.

"I'll need to borrow an Energem to test it but yes, it's almost done." Kendall told her. "It's the...Find And Retrieve...Thing?"

"That's the name?" Leanne asked her, raising an eyebrow. "You are aware that would make it the FART right?"

"Whatever, who says it needs a name anyway? As long as it works who cares what it's called?" Kendall responded, by now so tired and frustrated with figuring out a name for it that she really couldn't be bothered anymore.

"It looks an awful lot like a remote controlled car with a grabber claw." Leanne commented. Kendall just glared at her.

"A remote controlled car?" Kendall asked. "I'll have you know, it's armoured to a degree that will withstand explosions in excess of fifteen Gs. It has tracking software that will find any Energem signature within a half mile radius! It has some of the most sophisticated AI created that will allow it to act completely autonomously to retrieve the Purple Energem and then return to..."

She looked at Leanne, who just continued to stare at her. Kendall just sighed.

"Fine, it's a remote control car with a grabber claw." Kendall replied, putting a cloth over it. "That's a good mocha by the way."

"I learned from the best." She replied. "Riley's almost as good with that coffee maker as he is with a sword."

"Didn't he lose in that tourney?" Kendall asked. Leanne just humphed, looking a little grumpy.

"He conceded to come in second because he didn't want to win on a technicality." Leanne responded defensively. "Besides, losing to Rohan of the Mystic Isles isn't really something to be ashamed of. He's only been Grand Champion for the last four years straight."

"Okay, sorry." Kendall said, backing up. She seemed to have touched a nerve with Leanne, and didn't want to press on it any further. "I didn't know all the details. Besides, he only has been getting proper fencing training for a couple of years. His skill is pretty remarkable. In his first tournament he won silver in all three events."

"Yeah, he told me." Leanne said, brushing her hair behind her ear as she took a seat. "I try not to talk too much about it. Believe me, in the Mystic Realm sword fencing is like baseball. If you're a fan it's great. If not...well...conversations tend to become a little dry."

"I can imagine." Kendall chuckled. "Anyway, it's really getting late and I should probably get home. I might be able to manage about two or three hours sleep before I need to be back. Do you want a lift home?"

"It's quite alright." Leanne responded. Kendall looked a little concerned.

"Are you sure?" She asked. "It's pretty late and there are a lot of weirdos out there."

"Walking in the dark has never really bothered me." Leanne told her. "Besides, the weirdos probably have more to worry about than I do. Good night."

Kendall wasn't over the moon about letting her young employee go home alone so late, but being so tired, and knowing that it wasn't like she could exactly force her to accept a lift if she didn't want to, she conceded the point, leaving the lab and shutting off the lights after her.

Back at the theatre, the show was progressing well. Jack was getting the wound in his head stitched up without a care in the world. A few aspirin and some Jack Daniels was all he wanted as the first aid guy dealt with his wound. Carl was running around making sure everything was going as planned backstage. The crowd was eating up the show, and the excitement was building as the second-last match was just about over.

"Jack, there you are. Have you seen...?"

Jack didn't say anything; he just flicked his thumb in the direction of the door to an accessible bathroom that Koda and Alessandra had commandeered as they prepared her for her match. It was the debut of her new image, and they were as keen to keep it from the other wrestlers as they were the crowd. Carl took a lot from the reaction of other workers as to whether or not a gimmick would work out. He knocked on the door.

"It's Carl!" He called through. The door lock triggered, allowing him inside. As he stepped in, he saw Alessandra sitting on the can, while Koda had paint all over his hands and fingers, having applied it himself. He was used to doing this for members of his tribe back in the day, which was where he got the idea for this makeover. He looked to Carl.

"These paints not like mine, feel strange." Koda told him. "Not sure..."

"Just step away, believe me Koda, this is PERFECT!" Carl assured him. Alessandra flashed a bright smile as she heard this. He put down a bag. "I had my costume guy make up a couple of things for your entrance. I spent a lot of time looking on the internet for ideas and..."

"This perfect!" Alessandra screeched in delight, looking inside. Carl just smiled and nodded.

"Just get ready, Vandal and Klondyke are about to bring it home. We're going to announce you after Ricochet." He told her. "Get ready kid, this is going to be epic!"

He headed out, making his way through to the position by the curtain, just in time for the second-to-last match to end via disqualification. The crowd was livid and making their thoughts on the outcome known as the 'loser' walked away, leaving his opponent laying on the mat. Carl smiled. The crowd was hot, and more than ready for the main event. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and turned to see him standing behind him.

"How are you feeling?" Carl asked. The man standing next to him was bouncing on the balls of his feet, warming up for the match ahead.

"Pretty good, you've managed to get the crowd really hot for my last match." Ricochet answered as he looked out on the crowd. They knew what the main event was, and as the other man was making his way to the back, the crowd already seemed to be gearing up for it. There was a lot of his merchandise and signs dedicated to him on display. "Are you sure about the ending?"

"Look, you're heading for the big leagues. You've done a lot here! We just want to send you off the right way." Carl assured him, slapping his shoulder. "Now, go on out there and give them what they want."

"This is your main event of the evening. In his final performance for this company, from Paducah Kentucky, weighing in at 197 pounds, please give it up, for RICOCHET!"

The crowd were all on their feet and cheering loudly as he made his way out to the ring. It was an amazing feeling, one he'd had in a number of arenas, but he knew that this time was different. Having been signed by a major company, he was heading up in the world stage, and knew that the fans were willing him well on his way. As he got to the ring, among the cheers there was a thunderous chant of 'Please Don't Go, Please Don't Go!'. While they were happy for his success, many of the fans knew they would miss him in these smaller, local settings. He accepted their cheers gratefully, knowing that without their response, his success would have been impossible.

"Now, his opponent, hailing from Mexico, weighing in at 98 pounds, please welcome...Cuahocelot!"

The crowd knew Alessandra was his billed opponent, but they also knew about her being unmasked in her last appearance. They all looked to the entrance, waiting for her arrival. Smoke machines kicked into life, and flooded the entrance way. Alessandra burst through, and the crowd was amazed at what they saw.

She still wore her old tights and top, but now that she could no longer wear her mask, Koda had opted instead to use body paints to cover much of her upper body, neck, and shoulders with a kind of jaguar-like pattern. There was a massive, gaping mouth painted on her neck, under her chin and upper chest, so that as she raised and lowered her head, the jaws would open and close. She was wearing a long cloak and head-dress, styled after the Aztec Jaguar Warriors from whom she had taken her new name. It was a call back to her South American culture, and created a new character from her that incorporated her old image, but gave it an edge.

Alessandra kept composed as the crowd reacted to her new look, cheering for her as they voiced their approval. She noticed even her opponent seemed thrown, not knowing about the change of image as he pulled the referee aside to have a word with him. She entered the ring, and removed her cloak and head-dress as the crowd erupted, before the referee called them to the middle of the ring to begin their bout. Being a 'babyface match', namely one where both competitors were 'good guys', they touched hands out of respect at the beginning.

"That...is pretty awesome!" Ricochet complimented her. Alessandra had to remind herself not to smile at the compliment from the more famous star as they started circling each other. They quickly flew into a collar-and-elbow tie up, beginning the match.

In a sleazy, down-market motel, a little way from the city, a car pulled up into the parking lot. A man got out, and looked around to make sure he wasn't being watched. He didn't need to worry, he was so far out in the boonies that anyone here was unlikely to know or care who he was, or more likely was up to something that meant they were more concerned about people watching THEM. He grabbed a bag from the back seat, and headed for the room he had been told to go to, room 101. He knocked on the door.

"Who's there?" The voice came from the other side.

"Who else would it be?" He asked in an exasperated tone. "Just open the bloody door James!"

The door opened, and a man in an aquamarine and black checked shirt gestured him inside. He quickly checked to ensure the man wasn't followed, before closing the door.

"Rusty, I asked you to use a password..."

"For the love of GOD James, it's not like the FBI is looking for you or anything!" Rusty grumbled, handing him the bag. James just took it from him. His real name wasn't James, this was Dr Neil Navarro. The man that was spoken of within the field of Palaeontology in equal measures as a legend and a lunatic, the renowned scientist who had disappeared without a trace a decade before. He was no stranger to using false names, even before his disappearance. His adventurous spirit had led to a somewhat cavalier approach to borders and regulations that had gotten him in trouble a few times. James was, in fact, his middle name, one of his more common aliases. Since there weren't many people actually looking for him, it was a simple enough case just to call himself James Navarro and few would care enough to make a connection. He'd known Rusty for years; he was the only one that knew Neil was still alive and knew where he was. He'd called him James so long that the name just stuck out of habit. "And you can do your own bloody shopping!"

"What took you so long?" James asked, pulling some things out of the bag, supplies he'd asked for. Jerky, dried fruits, walnuts and some bottled water.

"Well, some of us have actually aged in the last ten years James. I don't move as quickly as I used to." Rusty answered.

"Rusty, I went into town today." James told him. "It was such a nice day; I didn't want to spend it cooped up all day."

"Well halle-freaking-lujah!" Rusty grumbled. "So are you finally ready to give up the Dr Kimble lifestyle?"

"Rusty, someone recognised me. He called out to me." James told him. "He...he called me dad."

Rusty fell quiet. He knew that James had a son. It was one of the main reasons he had gone into hiding. He had been pursued by the mysterious monster for years, ever since the accident that had changed his life forever. He had gone into hiding, refused to go home because he was terrified of the thought of it going after his family. Rusty just looked to him.

"Are...was it...do you really think it could have been Tyler?" Rusty asked. He had never actually met the kid, but James had often talked fondly of him when they worked together. He had become a father quite young in his life, and was enthusiastic about his family until he had made the heart-breaking decision not to go home. James had to shrug and hold his hands up.

"I...I don't know...maybe." He replied honestly. It had been ten years since he had seen Tyler. He had disappeared shortly before his eighth birthday. "I mean...he looked about the right age, and...how many people run up to other people just randomly shouting 'dad'?"

"How many people look EXACTLY the same as they did ten years ago?" Rusty asked in response. He could see the look on James' face and knew where this was heading. "You want me to check don't you?"

"If...if Tyler is here, we need to know what he knows. We need to make sure he doesn't get too close." James told him. "I'd never forgive myself if something happened to him now."

"James...it's been a while since that cat thing showed up." Rusty reminded him. "Maybe it's time to...you know...take a chance?"

"Could you just ask around for me?" James asked him. Rusty just sighed and nodded his head.

"I guess that wouldn't hurt." He replied. He pulled a nutcracker out of the bag, offering it to James, who just picked up a walnut, cracking the shell in his hands. It was something that Rusty hadn't been able to do in a good few years. He just put down the nutcrackers.

"Do you have any idea how much I hate you right now?" He asked. James just smirked.

"There has to be SOME advantages to this doesn't there?" He asked, pulling out his necklace, which carried the Aqua Energem. "Even if it is just making you jealous."

Back at the theatre, the fans were in fever pitch as Alessandra and Ricochet put on a match for the ages! He was one of the best on the scene, and Alessandra was pushing herself to keep up and put on the best possible performance on his final night with the company. She didn't even care that she was booked to lose the match. All that mattered was that by the end of it, he would get his proper send-off, and even in defeat her reputation would be bolstered by the close contest.

Ricochet came off the ropes, looking like he was aiming a clothesline for her, which she ducked, but he managed to stop right behind her. Grabbing her head and neck, he fell backwards, driving both of them into the mat, facing upwards. This was the set-up to the planned finish, he was going to hit her with his signature double-rotation moonsault, a move synonymous with him all over the world. As he rolled over to get up though, he pulled close to her.

"Knees up." He whispered to her. Alessandra seemed confused by this. It was the finish to the match, but he was calling for her to block it? He was quickly up on the turnbuckle and leapt off backwards. She saw him tuck for the somersault, before straightening out, aiming to land chest-first on her. Just as she'd been told, she lifted her knees so that he landed ribs-first on her knees instead. He got up onto his feet and staggered away, clutching his ribs and selling the impact. The ref looked to Alessandra.

"Small package!" The referee told her as he was 'checking she could continue'. She quickly got up, and ran over, grabbing Ricochet and rolling to the mat, tying him up into a tight ball, pinning his shoulders to the mat. The referee was quickly down beside them and started the count. 1. 2. 3! Alessandra released the hold, looking completely shocked as the bell rang. She had been booked to lose! Ricochet had changed the ending at the last moment, right there in the ring! The referee grabbed Alessandra's hand, lifting it high in the air as the crowd applauded her, and allowing her to parade around the ring.

Ricochet got to his feet slowly, and started to make his way towards her. He extended a hand, at which Alessandra shook it, accepting his show of respect, before they embraced in the ring and continued to accept the crowd's cheers, mixed in with loud chants of 'Please Don't Go!' obviously directed at Ricochet. They made their way to the back together, something which was generally unusual for opponents, and they received a standing ovation from their fellow workers when they got there. Alessandra ran for Koda, throwing herself into his arms and embracing him enthusiastically. Carl was grinning brightly, and stopped clapping long enough to approach Ricochet and Alessandra.

"Well, that was interesting." Carl stated. "I don't think it was the ending I booked though."

"Carl, you know as well as I do, you always go out on your back." Ricochet told him with a smile, before looking to Alessandra. "I've made my name here. It didn't matter if I won, and when I saw your girl in this...pretty awesome new get-up...I saw a star. I figured she could do with the rub more than I could."

"You amazing!" Alessandra said gratefully. "Thank you!"

"Hey, thank you! That's one of the best matches I've had here!" Ricochet told her gratefully. "Anyway, if you don't mind...I have a plane to catch. Florida's a long way from here."

"You hear that crowd?" Carl asked Alessandra. "That...that's your crowd! You killed it out there tonight!"

"I no manage without Koda." Alessandra replied.

"This only paint. What underneath make you great." Koda reminded her.

"I don't care what did it, mark my words, tonight a star was born!" Carl complimented her, looking out some business cards. "You get your ass to this studio first thing tomorrow morning! I want 8X10's, t-shirts, posters...the whole freaking deal! I swear to God kid, if I don't see a table full of your new merchandise at the next show, I am going to be super pissed!"

The rest of the locker room continued their celebration, most of them following Ricochet to wish him well on his way. Alessandra and Koda were grateful for that much. Alessandra didn't need a big celebration. Being in Koda's arms was more than enough for her.

 **A/N:** It took a while, but Alessandra's new gimmick has been revealed! What do you think? I'm open to suggestions or comments.

As for Ricochet...yes, he is a real performer! I chose him for his reputation, and the line about him going to Florida...that's a reference to the fact he recently signed a contract with WWE's developmental territory NXT. You can probably expect him to show up there soon (if he hasn't already by time of writing!). He certainly deserves it!


	17. Sledge Makes His Move

Early the next day, Wrench was making preparations for the invasion. With Sledge having the Purple Energem at last, the time had come for them to press the advantage. Painful experience had taught them that waiting too long often just gave the Rangers, especially their blonde scientist, time to prepare and come up with a new device or weapon to combat them whenever they had the advantage.

His body by now was mostly mechanical but he did have enough left of his own brain that he still felt emotion, and just thinking of her was enough to get him angry. He could feel it burning away, eating at his consciousness every time he remembered how often she had come up with a strategy to circumvent his plans. The first time he became aware of her was when he nearly brought the Ankylozord under their control, and seeing her for the first time, seeing that there was someone other than the Rangers there to turn the tide against them was enough for him to put a face to his aggravation.

Since then, she had managed to be one step ahead of him in their technological disputes. Whenever he came up with a weapon, somehow she managed to figure out a perfect defence. When he placed a bomb in Amber Beach, she managed to solve his puzzles and de-activate it. He had even once been involved in a direct hacking battle with her, one which he was ashamed to admit he had lost. This...human...had managed to defeat him at every turn, and while he knew that time was on his side, with his systems meaning that he had lived already for millions of years and was more than capable of living for millions more, knowing that she had defeated him at every turn was like an itch he couldn't scratch...a sensation he hadn't felt since he removed his last nerve millennia ago!

Right now, he was preparing other weapons, specifically storage of chemical weapons components as he prepared for when Sledge defeated the Rangers. He reasoned their search would be so much easier if there weren't so many plants and animals living on the planet to hide them. He was preparing for a form of "scorched Earth" approach to speeding up the search. The only thing he could think of that would make it any better would be if he could get his hands on her and force her to watch her world melt before her eyes. A vivik came in the door, seemingly without a care in the world.

"You there! Get your HazMat suit on!" He yelled at the creature. It wasn't actually working in the lab, being assigned to other duties, but since Wrench was yelling, it just went and got a bright yellow protective suit, assuming it had just been drafted to help him in his efforts. Wrench saw another one. "Are you pouring without a face mask? Am I the only one that cares about safety?"

Before he could say anything else though, he saw imminent danger as one of the creatures, who was pushing a trolley of the chemicals collided with a stack of garishly-coloured luggage that was being pushed in the other direction by a decidedly unhappy-looking Poisandra. He had to run quickly to catch a container that fell off the trolley before it hit the floor, possibly spilling its contents.

"You mush brains! This stuff will eat right through the ship!" Wrench yelled at them. Poisandra just wheeled around, glaring at him, flailing her arms.

"Who cares about the ship? They nearly ruined my beautiful luggage!" She screeched at him. "I'm leaving! This time, it's for GOOD!"

Wrench just muttered something in a very quiet tone. He had heard this before, Poisandra was nothing if not a highly emotional creature. Her sanity was always in question, as her emotional range had a tendency to go from the giddily happy to psychotically destructive with little to no provocation as far as anyone could see. Usually she was happy enough with the thought of her 'Sledgeums' and their pending wedding, but right now that didn't seem to be keeping her calm. She and Sledge had been fighting all night since she heard him say that now he had another Energem he was going after the other nine. Wrench only hoped she would choose to have her temper tantrum somewhere there weren't so many dangerous chemicals. Sledge, inevitably, wasn't far behind.

"Poisandra my sweet, please, you can't leave now! I finally have an Energem!" Sledge tried to reason with her.

"You have ONE Energem!" She yelled, stomping her feet like a petulant two year old in the toy aisle of a supermarket when their parents asked them to leave. "If you think I'm waiting another second for you to get all ten, you're CRAZY!"

Wrench had to try hard not to laugh. Poisandra calling ANYONE crazy was like the pot calling the kettle black.

"Please, just let me get just one more Energem." He told her. "Then, I promise, we'll get married!"

"You promise?" She asked.

"Today! We'll get married TODAY! Right her on the ship!" He told her. "Wrench can perform the ceremony!"

"Please don't bring me into this." Wrench whispered. Fortunately neither of them heard him; Poisandra was far too busy screaming in delight. She started skipping around, leaving the room with Curio.

"Oh, I have so much to do! After all this time..."

"...We're getting maaariieeedd!" Curio sang as he skipped away, arm in arm with her. Sledge just looked to the blaster in his holster and pulled it out, inserting the Purple Energem into it.

"It's time the Rangers faced the power of an Energem!" He stated. "Prepare the transport pods!"

Meanwhile, down on Earth, in the basement of the museum, the Rangers had all gathered. They too were more than aware that their time was growing short. With Sledge actually having an Energem, it seemed better to prepare for an attack on him than just waiting for him to dictate when the next battle would occur.

Kendall was demonstrating her new device, the robot she had created to search for Energems. They all watched as it rushed in from the other room, with Tyler's Red Energem in its claw, stopping before them. Tyler retrieved it.

"Five times in a row! Awesome!" Tyler exclaimed excitedly. "That last time I hid it in Koda's laundry hamper!"

"It's pretty brave going in there!" Chase chuckled. Koda just glared at him grumpily. Kendall smiled and came forward.

"And THAT is how Get-bot is going to find the Energem on Sledge's ship!" She told them. The Rangers all stared at her, causing her to feel a little self-conscious. "What?"

"Get-bot?" Riley asked. "That's what you called it?"

"Hey, I spent all night working on this thing! If you can think of a better name, go ahead!" She replied a little pointedly. Riley just backed down as the others decided to move on from the subject of the name.

"I guess it doesn't matter what it's called as long as it works." Riley said, still well aware of Kendall's hard glare on him. "But that still leaves the question, how do we get it on his ship?"

"That would be your job." Kendall replied. "We have to hit Sledge with everything we have."

Just then, the elevator opened up and Phillipe walked out.

"Which includes the Graphite Ranger!" Ivan said proudly, bowing in respect. "Your Majesty."

"How...how's Margaret?" Shelby asked tentatively. They could see that Phillipe wasn't his usual dapper self. He wasn't wearing a tie, his shirt collar was open, and he hadn't shaved. Given the look in his eyes, it didn't look like he had slept much either.

"She's as comfortable as she can be right now." He answered honestly. "If you please, the sooner we begin, the sooner I can get back to her."

"We appreciate you coming to help." Tyler answered. "We'd have understood..."

"Margaret would be the first once to remind me that the world is more important than any one person." Phillipe interrupted him. "We can go over all the treatment options we have, but it will all be rather pointless if the world is obliterated in the meantime."

"Alright, then all we have to do is head for the Plesio..." Chase started to say, before an alarm sounded. They all quickly looked to one of the viewing screens.

"We're...too late." Chase commented, seeing a number of transport pods heading straight for Earth.

"This complicates things, but...I think I have another idea." Kendall told them, gathering up the Get-bot. "Come on guys!"

"And where exactly are you going?" Ivan asked her.

"He's making the first move; your mission is now to drive him off!" Kendall told them.

"And...your mission is...?"

"My mission is to get this thing into a transport pod!" She told them. The others all just stared at her. "We're probably going to take a beating on this, but if we can drive him off, then we might get him to take this onto his ship FOR us!"

"Like...a Trojan Horse?" Riley asked. "That's kind of...?"

"Does anyone have a better plan? Because believe me, I'm all ears!" Kendall rushed out, sounding a lot more desperate than they were used to seeing her get. "No? Then come on!"

"You heard her guys!" Tyler answered. "Ivan, stick close to Kendall."

"Tyler, that really isn't..."

"This isn't negotiable." Tyler insisted. "You're not going out there completely defenceless."

"Fine, let's just go." Kendall told them.

Up in the cafe, Allison was setting up for the day ahead with Leanne. They both watched as the team marched straight past the cafe, heading for the vehicles outside. Leanne just looked to Allison.

"They seem pretty intense." Leanne commented. "This is a big one isn't it?"

"Hopefully the biggest." Allison responded. "I could really do with a break from all of this."

"If it makes you feel any better, I did live through the battle in Briarwood." Leanne told her as reassuringly as she could. "There were times it got pretty dark and scary, but...it all worked out in the end."

"I'll bet it was scary, especially for a kid." Allison replied. Leanne didn't seem to respond to that. "What? It was over ten years ago."

"Oh...um...yeah, you're right." Leanne answered a little nervously. "Yeah, but I was such an independent kid...I never really considered myself a kid."

"Even when you were six?" Allison asked. Leanne just looked away.

"I...think we have a customer." She responded, turning to the counter. "Hi, welcome to the Dino Bite Cafe! I'm Leanne, how can I help you?"

"I'd like a cappuccino and some information if it's not too much trouble." The man replied.

"Well, the cappuccino I can definitely do, but the information...I'll do what I can." She answered. She started to make up the coffee as he started rummaging in his pockets.

"A friend of mine used to work out here. He's...no longer with us I'm afraid, but I heard some of his family might be out here." He answered, putting down a photograph. "I was hoping to look this kid up."

"Oh...I'm sorry, he doesn't look familiar." Leanne told him.

"It's a really old picture...that's my friend there." He said, pointing to a man in the picture. "It was taken about ten years ago. I'm looking for this kid here, he'd be about...18 now."

"I'm sorry, I really don't..." Leanne said as her words tailed off. "Hang on a moment would you?"

She took the picture to Allison, handing it to her.

"What's this?" Allison asked her.

"There's a strange guy out the front. He says he's looking for the kid in this picture." Leanne replied. "He said he's probably about 18 now. I don't know about you, but from a certain angle...does that look like it might be...Tyler?"

"It could be." Allison agreed. "What about this other guy?"

"He said that was his friend, the kid's dad." Leanne responded. Allison looked up, looking a little shocked by this.

"Leanne, Tyler's dad's been missing for 10 years! This guy said he knew him?" She shrieked, heading back out the front. "Sir, can I speak to you...SIR!"

Unfortunately, by the time she got out the front, the customer was gone, leaving only a ten dollar bill to cover his coffee.

"Damn it!" Allison grumbled as Leanne joined her. "Did he even say what his name was?"

"I'm sorry...it never came up." Leanne replied honestly. Allison just nodded.

"Alright, fine, but if you see him again, tell one of us immediately alright?" She asked. Leanne just nodded in understanding.

Deep in the woods outside of the city, the Rangers arrived, just in time to see the transport pods flying overhead. By the looks of things, they weren't slowing down for anything, and they were going to be landing close. Kendall looked to Tyler as they morphed, ready for action.

"That is a LOT of transport pods." Tyler stated. "Sledge really isn't kidding around."

"They'll be on top of us soon." Kendall told him. "Ivan and I will circle around behind put the Get-bot in one of his pods. The rest of you need to drive him off."

"Sure, give us the easy job." Riley said, pulling out his Dino Sabre as Kendall and Ivan broke off from the others. The team started heading towards the direction of the transport pods, but before they made it more than a couple of paces, Tyler was hit by a blast and knocked from his feet. More worrying than the fact he de-morphed as he flew through the air was that he was completely silent. There was no scream of pain, no groan as he hit the ground, nothing. He just hit the ground and stopped moving.

"TYLER!" Shelby screamed, before looking up. The rest of the team looked up to see Sledge descending on his jet pack. It seemed that he had come down on his own ahead of the rest of his party to gain a surprise advantage. The Rangers were reminded of the first time he had come to fight them. His armour was capable of protecting him from the atmosphere, meaning he didn't need a transport pod to come down himself. It gave him the drop on them; he was much too small by himself to show up on any scanner.

"Surprise!" Sledge called out as he cut out his engines, coming down hard. The Rangers had to scatter as his massive weight hit the ground, the shockwave throwing up earth. Tyler's body was thrown up in the air, but hit the ground again shortly afterwards as the rest of the Rangers managed to regroup. They could only watch as he grabbed Tyler's Energem and ripped it from his neck.

"HEY!" Chase called out, firing off his blaster. "That's not yours to take!"

"Hah, you call that a blaster?" Sledge responded, aiming his blaster his way. "THIS is a blaster!"

Chase closed his eyes as Sledge pulled the trigger, but was surprised that it didn't hurt. There was no sound...other than a very loud, shrieking alert. He opened his eyes to see Sledge smacking his blaster.

"What is with this stupid thing?" He screamed. "WRENCH?"

"It's overheated!" Wrench responded through his helmet communicator.

"OVERHEATED?" Sledge shrieked. "After ONE SHOT?"

"It was never designed to operate with that kind of power!" Wrench reminded him. "You need to wait for it to cool down or it could..."

"I know the risk!" Sledge replied, putting his blaster away. He realised that his gamble had now backfired horribly! It would be at least a minute or two before the rest of his party showed up, and his primary weapon was now dangerously overheated. He now had no choice but to face off against five Rangers single-handed! "Looks like I'll need to take the rest of you down the old-fashioned way!"

"Come on guys! We'll never get a better chance than this!" Phillipe called out as they all ran straight for him.

A little way off, Ivan and Kendall were making their way through the woods, taking care not to run into any of Sledge's forces. They could already hear that they were passing pretty close, but it seemed they managed to pass them by without being caught. It wasn't long before they found the transport pods, guarded by a couple of Spikeballs. Kendall didn't expect things to be easy, but she had hoped that Sledge would be more concerned with taking the fight to the Rangers than guarding the pods.

"Damn it. This isn't good." Kendall muttered, looking to Ivan. For the first time, she was glad that Tyler had insisted he come along. "Ivan, can you...?"

"Your wish is my command my lady!" Ivan replied, gripping his Ptera Sabre and screaming a battle-cry, running for the Spikeballs. Kendall didn't have to wait too long before they were too caught up in fighting Ivan to notice her approaching the Transport pods. By the time she had programmed the Get-bot, Ivan was standing with his Ptera Sabre across his shoulders as the Spikeballs exploded. "Monsters Vanquished!"

"More importantly, the Get-bot is in place." Kendall told him. "Now that's done, you can get back to the others and make sure you drive Sledge off."

"But...I was told to..."

"You destroyed the only two bad guys out here; the scariest thing I have to worry about is getting sprayed by a skunk!" She told him. "I'll get back to the base myself. GO!"

"As you wish my lady." Ivan responded, knowing it was better to just go with whatever Kendall had to say than it was to argue. As he ran off, Kendall watched him go, before looking for somewhere to hide. Although she had told Ivan she was going to go back to the base, she needed to know if someone found the Get-bot before the transport pods left Earth. Secreting herself behind a felled tree, she could only wait and hope the Rangers were up to their part of the plan.


	18. WWKD

Sledge struggled against the combined might of all the Rangers. Tyler was still down and out, but due to the unforeseen complication of his blaster only being able to muster a single shot before it needed to cool down, combined with the fact his support was still a little way off, he was left facing them on his own.

Riley was kicked back hard, splintering through a massive oak tree as he grappled with Koda. The caveman was remarkably strong, and while not as strong as him, he was startled that now he seemed to be causing him issues with far more than just brute force. He had learned a lot from Jack and Carl, and as a result, rather than just pure brute strength, his grappling had a lot of technique behind it now, meaning he could easily circumvent Sledge's greater strength.

"Koda, give me a clear shot!" Phillipe yelled at him, powering up as he got back to his feet. He could feel blood welled up in his mouth from the shot that put him down, but he willed himself on, summoning up all the courage he could. Koda switched around, hooking Sledge into a chickenwing hold, immobilising him with his chest exposed. "Royal Ranger PUNCH!"

The wrecking ball flew out; glowing brightly as it went, slamming into Sledge's breast plate. There was an almighty clash as it hit, and he could feel it give. Koda used the momentum to carry Sledge overhead, dumping him straight on his head before regaining his feet.

"His breastplate! It's cracked!" Shelby yelled as she noticed a large crack running the length of it from his right shoulder to his left hip. "Riley, Koda, lend me your weapons!"

"Damn it, one more minute, that's all we needed, just one more minute!" Chase called out as he took aim with his Para Chopper and his Dino Blaster, taking down as many of the new arrivals as he could at range. Riley rushed to take on Fury with his Dino Sabre.

"Will you run away like you did all those months ago?" Fury taunted him as they locked blades.

"I've been waiting a long time for this!" Riley responded as they fell upon each other. Shelby recovered the triple spike while Phillipe and Koda fought to keep the monsters away from Tyler's fallen body.

"This is no time for a nap mate." Chase said to Tyler, earning himself only a groan in response. "We could use all the help we can get."

"Keep them occupied!" Sledge ordered his followers as he got his blaster back, checking on it. The temperature was falling, meaning that it wouldn't be long before he could fire another blast. He cursed as he started waving it around, hoping to use the air to speed up the process. While it was far from a clear victory, the Rangers were now occupied, and he had his back up. The Energems were now closer to his grasp than ever before, so close he could just about taste it.

Over in the Dino Bite cafe, Allison was standing by the counter, resting her elbow on the counter, while she rested her face on her hand. The morning coffee rush was just about over, but now that news had broken of a Ranger battle, the cafe, as it often did, quickly emptied. People were eager to go where they could get access to a television in order to see if the local news crews had managed to get some word on how it was going. She had suggested that the cafe could perhaps try setting up a large screen television in order to take advantage of that, but so far it was still "on the drawing board." It didn't help her right now, now she had no customers, and no way to check if her friends were alright, meaning that once all the chores were done, all she could do was wait and think about what could possibly be happening.

"Alright, the grease traps have been cleared out." Leanne answered, coming into the room with a cheerful skip in her step. She always seemed to have that about her, it was one of the reasons she was so popular with the customers. No one on shift with her minded, not least because it was reflected in the tips at the end of the shift. She seemed to find a way to make even the most unpleasant jobs seem like they were enjoyable. "So, how long ago was it since they were cleaned out?"

"I try not to think about it. The guys are meant to take turns cleaning them out, but more often than not, they end up having some kind of bet to see which one of them has to clean it up after it's been sitting so long it gets to the point of being a health hazard." She responded. "Last time Chase lost and he ended up smelling like onion rings for a week."

"Well, it's done now, so if it gets done regularly than no one will have to go through that." Leanne answered. Allison looked to her.

"How do you do that?" She asked her.

"Well...I had the time since the early rush died off." Leanne responded. "And it's not really that difficult, it's more the 'ick' factor and getting over that, once you start it's really not that..."

"I meant...how do you stay so calm?" Allison asked her. "You know as well as I do...better probably going through the Briarwood incident...what they're facing right now..."

"My Aunt and Uncle would say 'believe in magic', but I think I believe more in the people." Leanne assured her. "You know the guys, they've got this!"

"I wish I was as confident..." She started to say, before seeing something coming through the door. She responded quickly, shoving Leanne behind her. "Leanne, get back!"

"What the hell are THEY doing here?" Leanne asked, seeing a couple of Spikeballs and some viviks coming in.

"Those Rangers hang around here so much, Sledge wanted us to level this place!" One of the Spikeballs answered as he started to approach them. "We won't just destroy them; we'll destroy everything they care about!"

Allison grabbed a fire-extinguisher and sprayed it in the Spikeball's face, hoping to distract him while they got away, but in his blind stumbling, he hit her with his club. Hitting the wall and sliding down it, she started to fade out of consciousness. As she did, she could hear some screaming, but it didn't sound like Leanne, it sounded more...masculine. Her vision was blurry as she caught sight of someone fighting the monsters, and could swear that one of the Spikeballs was screaming in pain just as everything faded to black.

Back at the battle site, the Rangers were fighting for their lives as Sledge tried in vain to get his blaster working again. He let out a triumphant yell as the display finally showed it was ready to fire once more. He levelled it, beginning to take careful aim.

"Choices, choices, so many choices." He said as he tried to pick a Ranger to unleash it on. "Which one will it be?"

"How about NONE?" They heard Keeper call out as he somersaulted into the area, smacking the blaster aside with his staff, before knocking Sledge away.

"Keeper! You're here?" Chase called out.

"You may have an Energem, but you will NEVER have the heart of a Ranger!" Keeper told him.

"Keeper, stay back! He's too..." Riley started to say, before Keeper launched into the attack, leaping and twisting around in an impossible display. The Rangers had never seen Keeper fight, he always talked about conserving his power for when it was necessary, but they never knew HOW powerful he was. It occurred to him that he had said he had fought Fury millions of years ago, but they had presumed that his reluctance to fight was down to his power diminishing with age. "...dangerous?"

"He's amazing!" Shelby called out. "GO KEEPER!"

Keeper continued to out-pace Sledge, tagging him with harsh attacks that sparked off his armour. A particularly telling one struck home where Phillipe had split the breastplate. Sledge clutched at his ribs as he fell to a knee, before snatching up his blaster. Keeper managed to get his staff in the way, but the power of the blast still punted him off his feet. His staff fell to the ground out of his grip, and the alien fell to the ground, unmoving.

"KEEPER, NO!" Riley called out as he ran forward, but Fury cut him off, taking him to the ground. Sledge got slowly to his feet, still clutching at his side. There was already a thick, dark fluid coming through between his fingers, which the Rangers presumed was blood.

"Grab him!" Sledge screamed at some Spikeballs, indicating to Keeper. They quickly scooped up the lifeless form of the Rangers' mentor as the rest of them fired off shots to keep the Rangers at bay. He started to work with his blaster, which was protesting, but he started mashing buttons to over-ride the safety features. Who cared if his blaster exploded? If he managed to take out another Ranger, then it would be worth it!

"We can't let him go with Keeper!" Phillipe yelled as he rushed forward. Things seemed to slow down as Sledge aimed straight for him. He had inadvertently chosen Sledge's target for him. Sledge was about to pull the trigger when he was driven off his feet.

Ivan had arrived in his Ptera Zord, and unleashed its blasts, creating distance between the Rangers and their adversaries. He had hit Sledge almost directly, taking almost all the fight out of him. He needed a Spikeball to help him shakily back to his feet. He took one last look around and realised the situation. So far he had two Energems and Keeper in his grasp. If he waited any longer, he risked losing the advantages he already had.

"Fall back!" He called out to his forces. Fury seemed only too glad to break off from Riley, who was putting up a much tougher fight than he remembered from the first time he faced him. Sledge was quickly on his communicator. "Wrench! Cover our escape, send forth Greenzilla!"

Tyler started to stir and come to, at which Shelby was quickly by his side. He started rubbing his head.

"How are we doing?" She just pointed up at the sky as a massive green monster started to descend. "Oh...that well huh?"

They all looked up in time to see a huge, green monster descending. It seemed that Wrench had already used the Magna Beam on it. The huge creature was already starting to make its way towards the city.

"We need to get you..."

"I'll be fine Shelby." Tyler told her.

"But..."

"I said I'll be FINE!" Tyler said, pulling his arm out of her grip. "If that thing gets to the city, none of this is going to matter anyway!"

"Tyler, we've never tried to control the Zords unmorphed!" Chase reminded him.

"Then I guess there's a first time for everything." Tyler responded. "Someone mind giving me a hand?"

With that, Chase and Koda each grabbed one of his arms as the Rangers leapt into the Megazords, aiming to put a stop to Sledge's monster, leaving them to hope that Kendall's Get-bot would be able to retrieve the Energems in their stead.

Back at the Dino Bite Cafe, Allison started to come around, finding Leanne kneeling over her, holding a damp towel to her head. She tried to sit up.

"Don't move too quickly. You took a hell of a bump to the head." Leanne told her.

"Leanne, what are you doing here?" Allison asked her.

"I work here." Leanne responded.

"Yeah, but...why aren't you about fifty miles from here by now?" Allison asked her in response. "You could have been..."

"I'm fine." Leanne assured her. "I couldn't very well leave you behind."

"Wait...what the hell happened here?" Allison asked, looking around at the restaurant. It was a mess, but it was far from the demolition job she was expecting. The Spikeball had told her that they were meant to bring the whole place down. There were weapons discarded around the place, almost like the monsters left in a hurry. Leanne looked around and saw this.

"Ah...well..."

"What happened Leanne? Who did this?" Allison asked her.

"It was...a Ranger!" She told her.

"A Ranger?" Allison asked. Leanne just nodded. "But...all our friends are out...wait...was it one we've seen before?"

"I...don't think so." She answered.

"Leanne, which one was it? The Aqua Ranger? The Silver Ranger?" She asked. Leanne paused for a moment.

"Um...the first one." Leanne answered. "Yeah, it was the Aqua Ranger! His suit was this kind of uh...light blue colour!"

"Then where did he go?" Allison asked.

"I...guess he must have left after the monsters did. Maybe he chased them away." Leanne told her. "I was a little concerned making sure you were alright."

Just then, some wreckage shifted, and a vivik pulled itself out. It looked over to where Allison and Leanne were sitting, before letting out a hellish scream and running away. It ran so quickly and in such a blind panic, that it struck a wall and splattered into green goop. Allison just blinked, unable to believe what she had just seen.

"What...what was that about?" She asked.

"Maybe that's a question you should ask after we find out if you have a concussion." Leanne suggested, helping Allison up and positioning herself under her arm. "Come on, I'll get you to a hospital."

Back in the forest, Kendall was waiting for Sledge and his crew to return and head for the ship. She heard the commotion and was pleased to hear that they seemed to sound harassed and harried, like their battle hadn't gone well. She had to restrain herself from yelling out loud and jumping for joy as she saw Sledge being helped back to a pod by one of his Spikeballs, dark fluid running through his fingers from a wound in his side. However, her joy was short-lived as she saw him signalling to some others. She saw them dragging the unmistakable form of an unconscious Keeper.

"Bring him to one of the pods! Put him in that one!" Sledge instructed them. "He's cost me enough problems! Now thanks to him I only have TWO of the Energems! I want to see him burn for all he's done!"

"Keeper, what the hell were you even doing here?" Kendall asked herself. One of the Spikeballs looked around and noted a problem.

"Sir, if you take one of the pods, and Keeper does...there aren't enough pods for all of us." It informed him. Sledge just glared at him.

"Fury, deal with that problem would you?" He asked. Fury swung around, destroying a few of the viviks that were fortunate enough to get away from the battle. He looked to the others.

"Is there enough room now?" Fury asked. They all nodded in agreement, starting to climb into transport pods, squeezing in as many as they could. Kendall could only watch as Sledge and his cronies started to take off.

"They have Keeper and two Energems?" She asked herself. She stopped to try and think of what to do. When she couldn't come up with anything, she found her thoughts straying as they always did, to her idol. Whenever she didn't know what to do, she always tried to imagine what her Aunt would have done in the same situation. Steeling herself as she saw the last two viviks heading for the final transport pod, she found herself breaking cover.

She was quickly on top of them, hitting them with everything she had. With a hard kick, she sent one of them into a tree, where it turned into a green goo, while the other was thrown to the ground. Driving her heel down into its head, this one too turned into a green goo as it disintegrated. She ran, climbing into the transport pod and pulled the doors shut, setting the computer.

"Return to ship." The computer said as she figured out how to activate it. Kendall felt the ship lurching and beginning to move, before being pressed back into it by the acceleration as its thrusters kicked into life. She held on tightly.

"Alright Kendall, you had no choice." She told herself. "They have two Energems and they have Keeper. You needed someone...to go to the ship...completely unarmed...and with no powers whatsoever..."

She placed her hands over her face as she realised what she had just done.

"Oh Kendall...you so haven't thought this through." She muttered to herself, thinking that somehow she doubted her Aunt would have done this...at least without a much better plan!


	19. Stowaway

The Megazord rocked as Greenzilla struck it. The cockpit was filling up with smoke and sparks flew everywhere. Warnings were blaring from all of their control consoles.

"No wonder Sledge kept this thing under wraps!" Chase complained as he grabbed his control console to steady himself. "Its way tougher than anything he's thrown at us so far!"

"How the hell he managed to get this thing into a cell I'll never know!" Riley added.

"I suppose this is one knight who's actually going to get the chance to slay a dragon for real." Ivan put down as he looked to Tyler. The strain could be seen on the Red Ranger's face. The Megazords took their power from the Rangers, and without his Energem, that meant Tyler was providing that power himself. He was hesitant to suggest his next plan, but he realised they might not have much option. "Tyler, perhaps this is one instance where two Megazords are better than one."

"Ivan, are you...?"

"Attacking this beast head on is getting us nowhere!" Ivan cut off Shelby, understanding why she was hesitant to go with any plan that took Rangers out of the cockpit and put more strain on Tyler to control this one. "With those tentacles, approaching it head on is not going to work! Its power is too great! If we split up, we can hit it from multiple sides at once!"

"But..."

"Shelby, think about it." Chase told her. "It's a sound plan. Right now, we can't get through its guard. We're just sitting here while he picks us off at his leisure."

Shelby thought about it. She didn't want to put any more strain on Tyler, but seeing the state the Megazord was in, she couldn't help feeling like they were right. Greenzilla was picking them apart with ease, while they had yet to mount any kind of meaningful offence. She got back up, helping Tyler to his control console.

"Right, fine. Chase, Riley and Ivan, take the Ptera Charge Megazord." She told them. "Phillipe, Koda, you're with me."

"That sounds like a plan to me." Chase agreed as he, Riley and Ivan prepared their Dino Chargers. "Ptera Charge Megazord, Para-Raptor formation, arise!"

"Tyler, let go of the controls." Shelby told him. Tyler just looked to her.

"Shelby, I'm fine!" He assured her.

"Tyler, you're barely standing!" She replied. "Please, just...take a break! Let us deal with this!"

Tyler reluctantly let go and stepped to the back, leaving the others to hold off Greenzilla while Ivan, Chase and Riley formed up their own Megazord. He didn't like feeling helpless, but he knew without his Energem he was vulnerable. Right now, he had to conserve what energy he did have in case it was needed later. As he took a seat at the rear of the cockpit, he pulled out his communicator. If he couldn't help in this battle, then at least he could check on Kendall.

Kendall could hear her communicator starting to sound, and thanked her lucky stars that she was still on the journey to the ship. She was on her way, without any weapons or powers at all straight to Sledge's ship! She still couldn't imagine what possessed her to think this was a good idea. If any of her Rangers had ever entertained an idea like that, she would probably have dragged them straight to Keeper to have their Energem stripped from them. Now that she knew she was going onto the ship, the only chance she really had was to keep out of sight. Forgetting to turn off her communicator could have cost her life! The last thing she'd need is for it to go off when it was in earshot of one of Sledge's monsters. She answered it, finding Tyler on the other end.

"Tyler, what are you doing?" She asked him.

"The team are taking on Sledge's monster." Tyler told her as there was an explosion behind him. "How about you? Is the Get-bot on the way to the ship?"

"Um...well...yes, the Get-bot is on its way." She said, glancing down to the Get-bot at her feet. "They totally fell for it...it's on its way."

"Why...why are you moving around so much?" Tyler asked her.

"I'm really not." Kendall lied as she tried to reason her way out of this. "Maybe you're just moving around because you're in a Megazord."

"That doesn't look much like the woods behind you." Tyler answered. "And is that sound...is that jet engines?"

"Listen Tyler..."

"Where the hell are you?" He asked.

"It's kind of a long story." Kendall told him.

"Ms. Morgan, where are you?" He asked a little more forcefully.

"Well...I'm in one of Sledge's transport pods." She admitted.

"You're in a transport pod?" He asked her. "ON YOUR WAY TO HIS SHIP?"

"Tyler, the signal's starting to break up!" She lied, beginning to fiddle with the controls. She doubted it would be long before the pod got back to the ship.

"Kendall, don't you dare cut me off!" Tyler told her. "KENDALL!"

"It's MS. MORG..." She yelled back, just as she shut off the communicator. She felt the pod lurching aggressively and was thrown forward as it suddenly stopped. She heard several mechanical sounds outside, and felt the pod moving much more slowly.

"Docking sequence initiated." She heard a mechanical voice inside the pod say. She gulped as she realised this was it. She was now docking with the ship! The pod was being moved inside. Her heart raced as she was moved into position, before suddenly it stopped. She gulped as the door started to open. She couldn't do anything to stop it, and immediately shut her eyes as she waited for the inevitable. It didn't hurt as much as she thought. In fact, it didn't seem to hurt at all. She slowly, cautiously opened one eye as she tried to see what was going on. She was sure the docking bay would be guarded. As she looked inside, she could indeed see that it was guarded. In fact most of Sledge's most trusted crew seemed to be there! Fury, Poisandra, Wrench, Curio...but they all seemed to be pre-occupied. She could see Sledge's massive form on his knees, clutching at his side as they all swarmed around him.

"Oh Sledgeums, what have those beastly Rangers done to you?" Poisandra wailed as his minions swarmed around him. "Fury, you useless feline, do something!"

"I would if he'd just let me..."

"Will all of you STOP fussing over me?" Sledge yelled as Wrench came over with his first aid kit. Kendall now realised what had happened. Sledge was injured. They were all paying so much attention to him; none of them noticed her standing in the pod. She decided not to press her luck and took that opportunity to slip out of the room as quickly as she could.

Pressing her back against a wall, she took a deep breath. She was now on the ship, but that didn't mean she was safe. Surely it wouldn't be long before she was discovered. As she leant back, she noticed a strange, rubbery material on the wall. Turning around, she realised that it was a suit hanging up on the wall.

"A Haz-Mat suit?" She asked, looking a little puzzled. She was brought back into reality as she heard someone coming from down the hall. She hid behind the suit as best she could, just in time to see two humanoid creatures, viviks she presumed given the strange "speech" coming from them, dressed in full Haz-Mat suits and carrying containers of chemicals that were marked as dangerous.

Once they were passed, she saw them head into a room that looked a lot at a glance like a lab. It had to be Wrench's lab. If the Energems were likely to end up anywhere, Sledge would probably give them to Wrench to work into some of his weapons. She started hurriedly putting on the Haz-Mat suit.

"Kendall, this is by far the dumbest thing you have ever done!" She grumbled to herself, hurrying to get the suit on before anyone saw her. She had only just finished putting on the hood, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She suddenly froze up, she could swear her heart stopped beating right there and then. She was certain she had been caught.

"Hey, you!" She heard a voice behind her say. She turned around slowly, finding herself staring straight at Wrench. He stared straight at her, making her fear exactly how much the visor hid her identity. He stared at her. This was it, he could see straight through...

"Here, take this to the safe." Wrench told her, showing her the Purple Energem inside a little protective case. He closed the case and thrust it into her hand. Kendall just stood, completely gobsmacked. Was this really happening? Was she really standing with the Purple Energem right there in her hand? "Did you hear me?"

Kendall saw the way Wrench was staring at her and garbled something out, doing her best impression of a vivik. Wrench stared at her for a moment, before handing her something else from the first aid kit he was fetching, presumably for Sledge.

"Here." He told her. "It's a throat lozenge. It should help clear up that throat. The last thing we want is for you to take a coughing fit when you're handling those chemicals."

Kendall just nodded, thinking better of it than to press her luck, and turned around, heading for the lab. As she did so, she opened the case and slipped the Purple Energem out, and put it into her pocket, breathing a huge sigh of relief as her heart suddenly kicked into overdrive.

"Kendall, you are the luckiest person on Earth right now!" She whispered to herself, patting her pocket as she went into the lab. "Now all I need to do is find Keeper."

As he left, Wrench paused for a moment, glancing back at her.

"Aren't viviks normally taller?" He asked himself, before shaking his head and going about his business.

Back on Earth, the Rangers were finally starting to make headway against Greenzilla. Koda blocked the monsters attacks with his Tricera Shield, whine Ivan brought the Ptera Megazord round behind it. Riley brought the creature down with an attack from his claw.

"Guys, you will not believe what Ken...um...Ms Morgan has done!" Tyler rushed out.

"Tyler, this isn't the best time!" Phillipe said as he gripped the control console tightly. "We're kind of in the middle of..."

"She stowed away in one of Sledge's transport pods!" Tyler told them. "She's on her way to his ship right now!"

"SHE DID WHAT?" Shelby screamed as she, Koda and Phillipe all stared straight at him. "Are you...?"

"She told me herself!" Tyler told them, showing them his communicator. "Right before she got cut off!"

"Why Kendall do something so...stupid?" Koda said, with a look of disbelief on his face. Of all the things he could ever imagine saying, this probably ranked up there with 'how did I turn into a unicorn?' or 'I accept this Nobel Prize.'.

"I'm sure she has a plan." Phillipe said, causing them to stare at him. "I didn't say it was a GOOD plan!"

"She's going to get killed!" Shelby responded, trying to think of what to do. She looked around and saw that Greenzilla was down. The Megazords were damaged, but they were finally starting to get the upper hand. She looked to Phillipe.

"Can you guys handle things from here?" She asked him.

"It would be an honour." Phillipe assured her as he took the central controls. Shelby grabbed Tyler.

"Right, we're taking the Plesio Zord." She told him. "Hopefully we can get her out of there before she ends up getting killed."

With that, they abandoned the cockpit, leaving Koda and Phillipe to take the lead.

"Alright Ivan, are you ready to finish this?" He asked.

"It would be a pleasure to fight for the crown again!" Ivan declared as he, Chase and Riley powered up their ultimate attack. Phillipe put the Dino Charger into his weapon.

"Both at once, before it can recover!" He called out. "Final STRIKE!"

Greenzilla tried in vain to block the first of the attacks as it came towards him, but by now it was far too injured. The blast from Ivan's Ptera Megazord opened it up for the Megazord to rush through it with the Tricera Drill. The Rangers all collapsed at the podiums, exhausted as Greenzilla fell to the ground with a huge roar and exploded.

"That...was...a job...well done." Phillipe panted as he steadied himself against his podium. "Does anyone else want to say it?"

"Monter...vanquished." Ivan said as he tried to get his breath back. "So what do we do now?"

Phillipe's gaze turned towards the Plesio Zord as it blasted off towards orbit.

"If any of you believe in praying, now would probably be a good time." He replied.

Back up on Sledge's ship, Kendall was doing her best not to be noticed. She had gone into the lab so she wouldn't arouse suspicions, but now she had to make sure she wouldn't be seen as she went looking for Keeper and the Red Energem. She had found the safe, and remembered that she had been told to put the Purple Energem inside, but she hit upon another problem. The safe was locked, and she didn't know the combination! She tried a couple of combinations, and ascertained that it was a four-digit code, but it seemed Wrench had put in a specific code. She didn't even know enough about him to try and hazard a guess. She muttered as she stared at the key pad, trying to see if any of the buttons were worn down to at least narrow down WHICH buttons were pressed most often. Unfortunately, she had no such luck.

"I keep telling you, he'll be fine." Wrench said as he and Poisandra came into the room. Kendall put the box aside and went to a work station, pretending she was working. Taking a quick look around, it seemed like the viviks were creating some kind of biological weapon, most likely a defoliant. It made sense; it would be easier to search for Energems when there was no undergrowth to search through.

"But there was so much blood! I can't believe what those brutes did to my little Sledgeums." Poisandra whined as she followed him. "Ooh, they make me so...I can't...OOH!" She stomped her foot in anger. Kendall had to try hard not to laugh at the tantrum. Sledge was the one that started the fight. If he didn't want to get hurt, then he should have left the Rangers and their planet well alone.

"I'm telling you, he's fine." Wrench told her. "But if it makes you feel better, I'll let you be there when we incinerate Keeper!"

"Well, that does sound good." Poisandra said gleefully. "Let's do it now!"

"I'm just waiting on him waking up. He's in cell block C." He told her. "And now I've hooked the Red Energem up to the Magna Beam, it's a laser cannon that's going to blow any Megazord to pieces!"

That didn't sound good. She needed to get somewhere she could contact the Rangers and warn them about the laser cannon. It didn't surprise her that they would be looking to weaponise the latest Energem they had stolen, but it was a little worrying they had managed it so quickly.

"OOH! That sounds like FUN! Can I play with it?" She asked him. Wrench just shook his head.

"We can't use it until we're ready for the next attack!" He warned her. "We don't want that blonde scientist they have knowing how we plan to use their precious Red Energem!"

"Too late on that count." Kendall said under her breath. She saw a container of a chemical, and checking it, she realised it was a powerful acid. She picked it up, keeping it just out of sight as she headed out of the lab. When she was outside, she saw a sign.

"Cell block C...this way." She whispered, before running off.

Back in the lab, Poisandra let out kind of a frustrated little squeal and smacked Wrench in the chest, before stomping off out of the lab. Wrench just shook his head.

"What Sledge sees in her I'll never know." He grumbled, before noticing something on the counter.

"The Energem?" He snapped, before picking it up. "I told that mush-head to put this away ages ago! Where is the one I gave this to?"

The viviks were all busy, but they looked around and shook their heads, indicating that they didn't know. He opened the case, finding that the Energem was gone! He was about to raise the alarm, but he remembered the vivik from earlier. He was sure that there was something off about it. He searched his memory banks, recalling the time he had seen Kendall on the island. She was shorter than everyone else on her team by a significant margin. He was going to raise the alarm, but instead of pressing the button, he instead picked up his axe, before heading for the cell blocks. While he knew that it was best to raise the alarm, Kendall had humiliated him so many times; he relished the idea of being able to bring an end to their rivalry himself!


	20. Wrench's Prey

Kendall made her way through the ship, having found C-block. It did look a lot more secure than a lot of the other blocks, which made sense since she was sure they weren't taking any chances with Keeper. She passed by a door, with some very obvious "Danger" markings, that it seemed would withstand the Hiroshima Bomb unscathed! She kept on going, deciding to come back if she didn't find Keeper elsewhere. If they were taking that many precautions and it WASN'T Keeper, she really didn't want to meet whatever was in that cell!

As she continued on her way, she heard a conversation coming from a little further down. It was accompanied by some loud banging. It didn't sound like a beating, more like the clash of metal on metal. As she got closer, she looked around the corner of a corridor, finding a Spikeball standing by a barred door. It smashed its club against the bars.

"EAT IT!" The Spikeball yelled, smashing its club into the bars.

"I am very selective about the company I eat with." She heard a familiar voice responding. "I am NOT hungry!"

In his cell, Keeper was sitting cross-legged, calmly resisting as much as he could. Without his staff, he was largely powerless. His was a long-lived race, but even he had to admit that without his magic, he was getting on a bit, even for his kind. Physically, without his magic to back him up, taking on an army was a fruitless endeavour. That didn't mean he was going to just sit by and accept his predicament. He pushed the bowl of stew away from himself.

"Sledge wants you at full strength so you can appreciate it when we put you in the incinerator!" The Spikeball screamed at him. "EAT!"

Keeper didn't respond, just crossing his arms in defiance. Kendall had now confirmed that she knew where Keeper was, all she needed to do now was get rid of the guard. She made her way towards the guard, prodding him...WAS it a "him"?...She couldn't really tell with Spikeballs or Viviks. The guard swung around, seeing what he presumed was a Vivik in a Haz-Mat suit standing before him.

"What do YOU want?" He asked. Kendall suddenly realised this was where her plan fell apart. She should have thought that it would expect some kind of instruction. Making a sound with her tongue to do her best impression of a Vivik, she just started gesturing wildly to the door.

"Who wants me? Sledge? Wrench? Fury?" The Spikeball asked. Kendall continued with her rather demented and desperate game of charades, not really knowing what else to do. "Never mind, I'll find out myself! What's the point in sending you useless mush-heads as messengers? Fury knows we can never understand you...?"

As the Spikeball was about to leave, a thought occurred to him. Kendall saw him pausing, and realised what was coming. Looking around, she found a large monkey-wrench, and a cell with the door open. She started sneaking up behind him.

"Wait a minute." The Spikeball mused. "Why are you wearing a Haz-Mat suit down here?"

Kendall brought the Wrench down across the back of his head, and shoved him into the open cell, slamming the door behind him. She was fortunate that the lock triggered, since her blow wasn't enough to knock the Spikeball out, only stun him.

"What is going on?" Keeper asked as she returned to his cell. She took out the bottle of acid.

"Your parole just came through." She told him, beginning to pour the acid onto the lock. Keeper just stared at her.

"Kendall?" He asked. "Where are the Rangers?"

"Yeah, it's just me." Kendall told him, watching the lock dissolving. "Please, spare the lecture...it's a long story and...can we just focus on getting out of here?"

"KENDALL, LOOK OUT!" Keeper yelled, just in time. Kendall ducked, feeling the breeze as Wrench's axe grazed close enough to take the hood off her, along with a bit of her pony-tail and slammed into the bars. Kendall staggered away, looking up at the Cyborg.

"Wrench!" She rushed out. "Oh...this isn't good!"

"It looks like it's just you and me human!" Wrench said, yanking his axe out of the bars. Kendall gulped as he started to make his way over towards her.

"Look, we're both reasonable here, why don't we..."

Wrench came at her, aiming to split her in half like a log with his axe. Kendall managed to deflect the blow with the monkey-wrench.

"Ha! I'm more than just a science..." She said as she swung for him. The wrench rebounded off his head with an ominous clang...and not much else. "...nerd. Oh, that isn't good!"

Wrench grabbed her and threw her across the room, before starting to make his way towards her, gripping his axe tightly.

"You have no idea how long I've waited for this!" He told her as he came towards her. She started to back away.

"Um...Keeper...?"

"I cannot help." He told her, stepping out of his cell. "I am still shackled."

"Alright brain, if you're going to come up with some genius plan, now would be a perfect time!" Kendall yelled as she dove out the way as Wrench threw his axe right for her, embedding it into the wall.

On the Plesio Zord, Shelby and Tyler were heading for Sledge's ship. Shelby had used it the most out of the team, and was most familiar with its systems. She punched in a few commands.

"Alright, the cloaking is working, so they shouldn't be able to see us on scanners." Shelby told him. "But we can't do much about the fact a one hundred foot purple Zord is flying around...we just have to hope no one is paying too much attention to any windows."

"Come up on this side." Tyler told her, gesturing to the ship. "We should avoid most of the windows. Maybe we can get in unnoticed."

"Tyler, when we get in...I want you to stay behind me." She told him. Tyler just looked to her.

"Shelby, I..."

"Tyler, you don't have your Energem, you can't morph." She reminded him.

"I have this!" He reminded her, holding up Keeper's staff.

"Tyler, only he can use its magic!" Shelby reminded him. "To you, it's just a big stick!"

"You think I don't know that?" Tyler asked her. "I only need to get my Energem..."

"When you get your Energem, fine, you can fight all the creatures you want!" Shelby replied. "Until then, shelve your pride and stay behind me!"

"Fine." Tyler answered as he conceded the point. He even managed a little smile. While he was always an adventurous, and slightly reckless guy, he couldn't help feeling good about the fact that Shelby wanted to be there to protect him. "Thanks."

"Hey, you have to make it out of this alive right?" She asked him. "That way we can keep looking for your dad."

"We?" Tyler asked her. She just nodded.

"We." She confirmed, turning her attention back to what she was doing as they pulled in closer to the ship. "We should be able to board soon."

"Do you think they've seen us?" Tyler asked her.

"Well, they haven't started blasting us yet." Shelby reminded him. "We can only take that as a good sign."

"Well, here goes nothing I guess." He answered. "Ready for one more adventure?"

Meanwhile, down on Earth, Chase and the others arrived back at the restaurant, finding it a mess. Chase could see that it had been attacked. He had seen attack so many attack sites by that time; he could tell them a mile away.

"Allison?" He called out, beginning to freak out as he saw that he couldn't see her or Leanne. "ALLISON!"

"It's fine...we're both here." Leanne told them as she came in from the kitchen. "We got a visit from some of Sledge's goons. I just needed to get Allison checked out."

"What happened? Are you...?"

"I'm fine, really." Allison assured him as he grabbed her, hugging her tightly. "I just got a bump on the head. I'll be fine, really."

"Are you alright?" Riley asked Leanne. She just nodded.

"They barely got a chance to touch me." She assured him.

"Really?" Phillipe asked. "Because it looks like they did a real number on this place."

"They certainly did." Ivan said, rubbing his fingers on some green goop that had at one time been a Vivik. They all knew the signs. "Though it seems that they met a rather sticky end."

"What happened?" Chase asked. "How did...?"

"We were saved!" Leanne rushed out. "It was a Ranger! The...uh...Aqua Ranger!"

"The Aqua Ranger? He was here?" Ivan yelled. "He was here?"

"Why he not help us?" Koda asked.

"Well, yeah, he was here!" Leanne responded. "He came, kicked everyone's ass...then he left!"

"You saw the Aqua Ranger?" Chase asked his girlfriend. Allison just looked to him.

"Well, not really, I was kind of busy with the whole passing out and blurry vision." She responded as she held him. "But he definitely saved our butts."

"Maybe there's some video footage." Riley suggested. "If we check back, maybe we can see where..."

"There's no footage!" Leanne rushed out. They all looked to her. "I...uh...checked. I thought you might want to know where he went, so I checked. I guess they must have done something that blitzed the cameras."

"Well, at least we know the Aqua Ranger is here at long last." Ivan responded.

"Yes, though I would like to find him." Phillipe agreed. "We may well need his help...or her help...in the near future."

"Not to mention to thank him." Chase replied, holding his girlfriend. "I don't know what I'd have done if anything had happened to you."

"Well, here's hoping you won't have to find out." She answered. "So...where are Shelby and Tyler?"

"They're probably on Sledge's ship by now." Riley answered. "They're going after Ms. Morgan."

"Ms. Morgan is on that ship?" Allison yelled. "SHE WENT TO HIS SHIP?"

"Yeah...that's kind of a long story." Riley said as they started to straighten out the restaurant.

Back up on Sledge's ship, Kendall was trying desperately to keep one step ahead of Wrench. She fought where she could, but she was quickly realising that physically at least, she was at a severe disadvantage. Wrench had fought against fully powered Rangers several times. Against a human with no powers, her wrench was of no use against his armour. He back-fisted her into a wall, before snatching his axe out of the wall, beginning to advance on her as she tried to regain her bearings.

"I can't believe you're the one that's been thwarting all my plans and destroying all my weapons." He taunted her as he came towards her, scraping his axe along the floor. "Just a pathetic, weak little human."

She rolled aside as he brought it down, but now found herself cornered. He turned towards her, blocking her way out. She now had nowhere left to go.

"You probably laughed at me, thought you were so great when you hacked me and when you destroyed my masterpieces!" Wrench said as he brought his axe up overhead. "I'm not normally into this kind of thing, a little low tech...but taking that pretty little head off your shoulders will be satisfying!"

He brought the axe down, but Kendall blocked it. She struggled against his strength as he started driving the blade down closer and closer to her face. Her eyes crossed, and she could only focus on the edge as it inched slowly closer and closer to her face.

"You're only delaying the inevitable." He told her. "Hope you enjoyed your little victories...right now...I'M winning the WAR!"

Just then, Kendall started to push upwards, a new strength suddenly surging through her. Wrench seemed just as alarmed as her as she started to move him away from her. She saw purple energy starting to flow up her arms as she pushed him up, before with one last huge push, she threw him off her completely.

She got up, and stared down at herself; purple energy was starting to engulf her. Instinctively, she reached her hand into her pocket and pulled out the Purple Energem which was glowing brightly.

"What in the world?" She asked, before there was a flash of images in her mind, and she saw the Plesiosaurus. As a huge flash of bright light dissipated, she saw her hands, though now they were covered with white gloves, and purple running up her arms. Reaching up, her hand met the smooth surface of a helmet. In her other hand, the monkey wrench had been replaced with a Dino Sabre. "I'm...I'M THE PUPLE RANGER?"

"You're a Ranger now?" Wrench yelled, before running for him. Before he got there though, Kendall smashed the axe aside with her Dino Sabre. Powering it up, she sliced his arm from his body, sending it and the axe spinning away. "NO! Please! We're reasonable people...!"

Kendall put all the power she had into her swing, charging up the blade as she came forward, slicing off his other arm, before spinning around and cutting off both his legs at the knees with a huge yell. As Wrench crashed to the floor, completely helpless, she placed the Dino Sabre across her shoulders.

"You want to know what the funny thing about our rivalry is Wrench?" Kendall asked him. "I wasn't even aware we HAD a rivalry! You just lost a game only you were playing! Think about that as we walk right on out of here!"

"The Purple Energem has chosen a new bearer! A wise choice indeed!" Keeper congratulated her.

"Stay behind me!" She told Keeper as she heard some movement, and turned to the door, only to see Tyler and Shelby arriving. They skidded to a stop as they saw the Purple Ranger before them.

"Whoa!" Tyler said as he saw what was happening before him. "The...Purple Ranger?"

"Kendall?" Shelby asked, seeing that the Purple Ranger before them was clearly female. Kendall just nodded.

"Yes, it's me!" She told them, swinging around and slashing out for Keeper's shackles. "And it's MS. MORGAN!"

The pieces of his broken shackles hit the floor, freeing him. As Kendall turned around to face her team once more, Tyler and Shelby both just nodded in understanding.

"Um...yeah, that's what I meant." Shelby answered. "Ms. Morgan."

"Alright, they're hooking up the Red Energem to the Magna Beam to make a laser cannon." Kendall told them. "We still need to get it back and then we can get the hell out of here!"

"That sounds like a plan." Tyler answered as he threw Keeper his staff.

As they ran from the room, Kendall was glad she had the helmet on, because underneath the helmet, she was beaming brightly. This was everything she had ever dreamed of! Just like her idol, just like her Aunt, she was a Ranger! The Purple Ranger, and it was everything she ever hoped for!


	21. Enemy Territory

The Rangers were down in the lab, waiting for word from the rest of their team. It hadn't been particularly long, perhaps a little over an hour since they had split off in battle, but that didn't mean to say that they weren't now worried. Like it or not, there was only one Ranger with any powers on their way to the ship. They wanted to go up and help, but until they got word from the others, anything they did only risked giving the game away.

"Would you mind NOT doing that?" Chase asked Ivan as the Gold Ranger ran a whetting stone along the edge of his Ptera Sabre. It was a pointless action, since it self-sharpened between battles, but it was an old habit. He had often spent time between battles doing that exact same thing. "It's really starting to get on my nerves."

Ivan just put the sword and the stone aside, clasping his hands silently in front of him. Chase continued to hold onto Allison. She had assured him she was fine after the assault, but right now Chase couldn't bring himself to leave her side. It was clear he felt a little guilty about the fact he wasn't there when she needed him.

"This make Koda angry." Koda blurted out. "Want smash! Want help friends!"

"Koda, we all feel the same way." Chase assured him. "I know all this waiting feels worse than the actual battle."

"This is nothing. Back in my day, before we had all your telecommunications, we would arrive on the battlefield at least the day before the battle." Ivan informed them. "We'd need to wait on the messengers taking messages back and forth during negotiations before we'd even know if we were going to HAVE a battle. It wasn't unknown for us to spend two, three days in some muddy field before the battle ahead."

"I'm going out of my mind and it's only been a bit over an hour." Chase agreed, grabbing a cup. "I'll bet back then your camps didn't at least have cocoa."

"Most certainly not." Ivan agreed, finishing his cup. Just then, Phillipe came back into the room, talking on the phone.

"Yes, thank you doctor." He responded as he hung up. He looked to the others. "Margaret's just resting."

"Riley, any luck with that footage?" Chase asked him. While they were waiting to hear word from Shelby, there was another mystery for them to solve. The restaurant had been attacked, but the girls had been saved by the Aqua Ranger! Though according to Leanne, he ran away moments later. So far, they had no idea where the Aqua Ranger had been, but now they had an appearance right here in Amber Beach? Unfortunately so far his appearance had only given them more questions than answers. Where was he? How long had he been here? Where did he go? Why had he not come to them before now? The footage had been damaged, but Riley was hoping he could salvage something.

"Uh...no, sorry." He replied. "I've cleaned it up as much as I can but...I still can't find anything."

"I guess we have to put that mystery on the back burner then." Phillipe responded. "Until then, all we can do is hope things are going well up there."

At that moment, up on Sledge's ship, a couple of Spikeballs were patrolling the corridors. They heard a noise as something rattled down the hallway.

"What was that?" One of them asked. They both went to investigate. As they got to the end of a dead-end, one of them crouched down, finding a large bolt on the floor.

"It was nothing, just this old tub falling apart as usual." The one with the bolt said, throwing it aside. "I thought Wrench was meant to see to the upkeep of this place."

Before he could get up though, his comrade fell to the floor and stopped moving, before dissolving into the floor. He looked up in time to see the Purple Ranger bringing her Dino Sabre down, before everything went dark. Kendall gripped her Sabre tightly as she looked around for any sign she had been heard.

"OK, you're good at that." Shelby responded. "Scarily good!"

"The Plesiosaur was an ambush predator." Kendall reminded Shelby. "It's not surprising I took on a few of its characteristics."

"Alright, so we got rid of the guards." Tyler stated. "Now, I'm almost certain we docked the Plesio Zord right through here."

Just then, they heard a strange, mechanical sound. They looked down the hall in time to see the Get-bot rolling around the corner.

"The Get-bot?" Shelby asked.

"It was in my pod." Kendall recalled. "I forgot all about it!"

"So what's it doing?" Tyler asked her.

"It's operating on its original programme so..." Kendall started to say. "Oh no!"

"What?" Kendall asked.

"It's searching out an Energem!" She told them.

"But we already have the Purple..." Shelby started to say. "It's going after the Red Energem!"

"So we can follow it!" Tyler suggested. Kendall and Shelby looked to each other, and then back to Tyler.

"But...Wrench said it's in the Magna Beam." Shelby reminded him. "That'll be on the Bridge! You'd be running right into Sledge and..."

"I'm not leaving here without my Energem." Tyler told her.

"But Tyler, Sledge and Fury and Poisandra...it'd be suicide!" Shelby told him.

"You heard what Wrench said, that laser cannon will take out our Megazords. If we don't get it, we're sitting ducks. He'd be able to take pot-shots whenever he wanted."

"Tyler, we came for the Energems and Keeper. We've got one Energem and Keeper. That's a win as far as I'm concerned." Shelby answered. "We can come back for the other one."

"I hate it too, but Shelby's right. We need to get Keeper out of here." Kendall told him.

"But my Energem is right down that way!" Tyler told them, pointing to where the Get-bot was heading.

"Fine, then if you stay, we do too." Shelby told him flatly. "Either all of us get out of here, or none of us do."

"But Keeper..."

"I'm serious about this Tyler, I'm not leaving here without you!" Shelby stated with authority. "I mean...we're...not leaving without you."

Tyler thought about it for a moment, before nodding.

"Fine. We'll take Keeper, get out of here, and then come back with the others." Tyler agreed.

"Good. Then we understand each other." Shelby answered. "Come on, let's go."

As they stepped through the door to the loading bay they'd docked into though, Tyler suddenly shoved Kendall, Shelby and Keeper all through the door, before hitting the button to close the door behind them.

"Tyler! What are you...?" Shelby started to say, pounding on the door as she watched him smash the control panel, preventing them from unlocking it. "TYLER!"

"I'm sorry Shelby, but that is MY Energem!" Tyler told her.

"Tyler, you don't have your powers...and you want to take on Sledge ALONE?" Kendall screamed at him.

"Get going! I'll follow you!" Tyler told them. "Shelby, I'm sorry. I have to do this!"

As he ran off to find the Get-bot, Kendall and Shelby continued to pound on the door screaming.

"TYLER!" Shelby screamed.

"How could he do anything so unbelievably reckless?" Kendall yelled. Shelby just gave her a withering look.

"Really?" Shelby asked. "After what you pulled, you don't get to call out any of us again!"

"Well...uh..." Kendall stammered. "There's nothing else we can do. We need to get out of here."

With that, they headed for the Plesio Zord, Shelby taking one last look back.

Back at the Cafe, Leanne was straightening out the restaurant as much as he could. It was clear that they would have to close for a little while to replace some of the broken furniture, but she was trying to salvage as much of it as she could. Riley arrived, seeing her.

"Hey, Riley, are you after the food?" She asked him. "It should almost be ready."

"I think you've got it handled." Riley said with a smile, helping her right a chair and sitting on it. "Wow, those monsters really did a number on this furniture."

"Yeah, they sure did." She agreed. "I know you Rangers are heroes and everything, but you have absolutely no respect for property damage."

"I'd almost be offended if it wasn't true." Riley chuckled. "I lost count of the number of cars I've written off. I think the real reason for the secret identity is to prevent lawsuits!"

"Can you be sued considering the fact you're a minor?" Leanne asked him. Riley shrugged.

"All I know is I don't want to find out." Riley answered. "So exciting day huh? We have the battle with Greenzilla and you get to see the Aqua Ranger?"

"Exciting isn't exactly the word I'd use to describe it." Leanne chuckled, covering her mouth with her hand. "I was spending most of my time cowering behind the counter."

"So...you saw barely anything?" He asked.

"I wouldn't exactly say THAT." She told him.

"But you just said you were behind the counter." Riley pointed out. "How would you see anything?"

"I...saw a little bit of it." She told him. "He came in through the door, and started...uh...swinging his sword and everything..."

"His sword? He had his sword?" Riley asked her.

"Yeah, it was green, just like yours." She said. "Say, why are all your swords green anyway?"

"It's just...the weapons get called from the lab and according to Ms Morgan's systems," Riley said, pulling up some information on his phone for her to see, "his sword's never left the lab since it was made."

"Oh...well...like you said, I was ducking behind the counter." Leanne answered. "It might have been...a table leg or something."

"But you said you were sure, that it was green!" Riley reminded her. Leanne just crossed her arms defiantly.

"Are you interrogating me?" She demanded.

"No, but I'm trying to figure out what happened." Riley told her, regretting putting her on the spot like that. He really didn't want to sound like he was accusing her of anything, not when all he was doing was trying to figure out what had happened. "I'm really glad that you weren't hurt."

"I'm glad too." Leanne said with a little chuckle, covering her mouth with her hand. Riley just went to the grill.

"So, you want me to take this to the others?" He asked her.

"Yeah, it should be ready." Leanne answered.

"Say, you want to come down and join us?" Riley asked her.

"Oh...well...alright." She responded. "But give me a moment to get some coffees together alright?"

"The way you make coffee? You bet!" Riley answered as he left. Leanne went to the machine and started making up more coffee.

Up on the ship, Tyler made his way through, avoiding guards where he could. The Get-bot was making its way through the ship at a decent pace. It seemed to be heading right for the bridge, just as Kendall had warned him. As he got closer, Tyler looked around for a weapon. He had already squared off with Sledge twice, and both times he'd come off the loser.

He almost jumped out of his skin as his communicator went off. He pulled it out, answering it.

"What the hell?" He asked as he saw Shelby on the other end. "Are you TRYING to get me caught?"

"Not exactly." Shelby told him. "But we figured, if we can't convince you to leave, then at least we can support you."

"How are you planning to do that exactly?" Tyler asked him. Just then, the ship rocked, almost causing him to lose his footing.

"We'll give them something else to think about." Kendall told him.

"You ARE aware I'm still on this bloody thing right?" Tyler asked.

"Don't worry, I'm not targeting anything vital! It'll only do cosmetic damage." Kendall assured him. Tyler was about to respond, but before he could, he heard footsteps and had to quickly get find somewhere to hide. Fury and some others started to run past him.

"Where the hell is Wrench? Repairs are his department!" Fury complained. "Alright, you lot go that way, I'll go this way!"

Tyler smiled seeing this. He lifted up his communicator.

"Thanks guys!" He replied, before putting it away. "The way should be clear, thanks!"

Meanwhile, over on the Plesio Zord, Shelby was overjoyed hearing Tyler say this.

"Thanks Ms Morgan! You're the best!" Shelby stated, restraining her urge to reach over and hug her. Kendall just nodded in response.

"Hey, it gives me a chance to use my Zord." She responded. "Is this what piloting a Zord feels like every time? This is incredible!"

Just then, they had to bank sharply as the ship started firing back. Shelby held on tightly to her control column as Kendall pitched the Zord to avoid the first barrage.

"OK, that is a LOT of firepower!" Kendall commented.

"Well this was YOUR plan!" Shelby responded. Kendall just shrugged.

"I never said it was a GREAT plan." Kendall answered her honestly. "All we can do is hope Tyler gets out of there before one of these guys figures out how to shoot straight!"

Back on the ship, Sledge was by the main console, taking pot shots at the Plesio Zord. He swore loudly as hi first volleys missed. The gunners on the other decks didn't seem to be faring much better! Most of the shots missed completely, and those that did seemed to cause only superficial harm.

"Stay still you cowards!" Sledge snapped at them. "Why are all my gunners so useless? How can you miss a one hundred foot target?"

He stopped talking as he heard the door slamming shut behind him. He turned around to see Tyler standing by the door, activating the locking mechanism.

"YOU?" He asked. "How did you...?"

"Never mind how I got here Sledge! You have something of mine!" Tyler declared as confidently as he could. "I want it back!"

"You come here, with none of your friends, no weapons...and you DARE to demand ANYTHING?"

"You're doing a lot of talking!" Tyler said, adopting a guard. Sledge turned from the console and started making his way towards the Red Ranger. Tyler cast a quick glance around Sledge, seeing the Get-bot heading for the console with the large red button and tools coming from it, beginning to open it up.

"That must be the Magna Beam." Tyler thought to himself. "If I can keep Sledge's attention on me long enough, maybe..."

His thought was interrupted as Sledge took a massive swing for him, his fist colliding with a bulkhead, denting it. Tyler just bounced on the balls of his feet, trying to keep moving.

"All I have to do is hope he doesn't crush me like a melon in the process!" He thought to himself.


	22. The Sky Is Falling

The whole Plesio Zord shuddered as explosions went off around it. Shelby held onto her control console for dear life as Kendall darted this way and that, manoeuvring the ship through the worst of Sledge's onslaughts. She was well aware that his ship had to have at least comparable power to a Megazord, but she wasn't in a hurry to find out, especially if Wrench was telling the truth about the laser cannon he had powered with the Red Energem.

"Hah! Take THAT Sledge!" Kendall called out, firing off a blast that tore one of the outer turrets from the ship. She could see among the wreckage viviks being sucked out, spinning off into space. "That's one less cannon to worry about!"

"Yeah, we only have to worry about the other forty or so!" Shelby complained. "Ms Morgan, you aren't even using full power!"

"I have no idea how connected the ship's systems are!" Kendall reminded her, swerving to avoid a torpedo. "One false move and I could cause a feedback into the main power reactor; it could take the whole ship up with Tyler still on it!"

"So instead we just..."

"We just have to hope all that time I spent on the Zord simulators wasn't wasted." Kendall responded.

"Wait...you spent time on the Zord simulators?" Shelby asked her. Kendall understood the importance of training in all aspects of combat, including the use of the Rangers' Zords, and so she had built a programme that allowed them to enter a VR simulation of Zord battles. It was a way for them to be prepared for the use of their Zords without having to flatten large areas of Amber Beach or the surrounding areas.

"I couldn't let you guys try it without knowing it worked, could I?" She asked as a smile crept across her face. "But I have to say...this is really pretty awesome!"

Shelby held on as Kendall swung around for another attack.

"I think we've been a bad influence." She muttered to herself. "When did I become the voice of caution?"

Back on the bridge of Sledge's ship, Tyler was only barely able to keep out of Sledge's reach. Given his size and the weight of his armour, he was expecting him to be a lot slower than he actually was. Unfortunately it seemed that Sledge was well used to moving in the armour, like he never took it off and was used to its weight. The small size of the cockpit didn't help either, meaning that between the small space and Sledge's size, he didn't need to be particularly fast either. He was beginning to tire from the battle, but having seen Sledge in battles before, he had noticed that he tended to flee if they took too long and hoped that meant he just needed to outlast him.

Sledge brought both hands down in a hammer-blow, which Tyler was only just able to roll out the way of. His hands came crashing down through a bank of computers, sending sparks flying.

"Damn, that looked expensive!" Tyler taunted him. "I really hope you have good insurance!"

Sledge came rushing at him like a freight train, lowering his head. Tyler was banking on this. Without his powers, he could only hope that his goading could lead to Sledge making mistakes. It was working for the most part, but he could already feel his heart pounding in his chest and his lungs beginning to feel strained. He dove over the top of Sledge's clumsy lunge, shoving his head down for good measure. Sledge's momentum carried his head into a monitor, causing him to convulse and jerk around as sparks flew everywhere.

"I know some people will do anything to get on TV but that's just ridiculous!" Tyler quipped as Sledge jerked around. He knew better than to hope a few thousand volts would do much more than anger him though. He cast a glance to where the Get-bot was working on taking a panel off the Magna Beam control column. It was working fast, but it looked like it still had a way to go. Tyler looked back in time to see Sledge finally managing to pull himself out of the screen, only to hit him with a hard kick.

Tyler flew backwards through Sledge's throne, and clutched at his ribs in pain. He was sure he'd felt something break, and he could already feel warm blood starting to well up in his mouth. Sledge grabbed him and slammed him against a wall. Tyler struggled to get free, but he couldn't.

Sledge knew he had the upper hand now, and he wasn't going to give it up. He maintained his grip on Tyler as he threw him to the ground, before driving him into the wall again. He wasn't giving Tyler a chance to get away from him again.

"I'll never understand you humans!" Sledge snapped at him. "Of all the species I've ever encountered, all of them stuck very strictly to their survival instincts."

He drew him back, slamming Tyler into the wall again, smashing more air out of Tyler's lungs. The Red Ranger spluttered as he tried to remove Sledge's hand, though finding his grip so strong he'd be as well trying to pry off a mountain!

"You know I've felled far more powerful beings than you! Yet here you are trying to fight me without so much as a decent club." Sledge said derisively. "What exactly do you propose to do when you don't have the power to defeat me?"

"Fight dirty!" Tyler responded, spitting a mix of blood and spittle straight into Sledge's face, splattering across Sledge's visor, preventing him from seeing. Tyler saw the crack in his armour and the wound in his side and jammed his fingers into it as hard as he could, clawing into it with his fingernails. Sledge screamed out in pain and released him, staggering back, but not before knocking Tyler down. Tyler looked up in time to see Sledge clearing his vision.

"You little...!" He spluttered in his anger. "Just for that, you can WATCH YOUR CITY BURN!"

"NOOOO!" Tyler screamed as he could only watch in horror as Sledge reached for the Magna Beam, slamming his hand down onto it the big, red button.

Outside, Kendall was lucky as the beam launched, narrowly missing her. She had to throw the Plesio Zord into a flat spin to avoid it, but leaving it spinning out of control and vulnerable to other volleys.

"Whoa! That was WAY too close!" Shelby exclaimed loudly.

"That was the Magna Beam!" Kendall called out in horror. "It's locked onto the museum parking lot!"

They both immediately turned their attention to the viewing screens, bringing them to the museum in the hopes of seeing if their friends could somehow stop it. They were just in time to see the beam hit. The flash was so bright it nearly blinded them both.

Down at the museum, the rest of the team were awaiting word on what to do when their warning alarms went off.

"What the hell is that?" Chase called out. "More goons?"

"It's a target lock!" Riley screamed. "Sledge has fired the magna beam!"

They all rushed for the door, not really sure why. The only plan that made any sense was to call the Zords and have them take the hit...but by the time they called them, they weren't sure that they would be in time.

As they got to the door, morphed and ready for action, they saw the beam coming right for them. They were already too late. They all shielded their eyes as they waited for the inevitable. They waited...for a lot longer than they expected.

"Is...is it over?" Phillipe asked.

"I would have expected oblivion to hurt more." Ivan remarked. They all slowly but surely opened their eyes and looked out into the parking lot.

"Well, the GOOD news is that it wasn't the laser." Riley remarked, craning his neck upwards to look up at the company truck, which was the only vehicle in the parking lot. "The bad news is...Ms Morgan has a LOT of explaining to do to the insurance company!"

Back on the ship, Sledge had noticed that there was no great cataclysm on the planet's surface. There was no sign that the beam had done anything at all!

"What is wrong with this thing?" He screamed. Tyler got the answer though as the Get-bot rolled towards him, and presented the Energem to him. Tyler snatched it, feeling its energy already filling him, giving him the boost he needed to get back to his feet. Sledge looked to Tyler just as he clenched his fist around the Energem.

"I've got what I came for! I can leave this ship past you, or through you!" Sledge just moved to stand in the way of the door. Tyler told him, morphing immediately into Dino Steel mode. He summoned up his Tyranno Smasher. "Fine, that's your choice! Ms Morgan! I've got the Energem! Tear this thing to shreds!"

"Tyler!" She protested.

"I'll make my own way off the ship!" Tyler put down flatly. "Bring it down!"

Back on the Plesio Zord, Shelby and Kendall looked to each other. They heard Tyler's order, but neither of them wanted to follow it. Kendall though knew that they now had Sledge more desperate than ever. He had virtually nothing to lose now by bringing his whole arsenal down in a petulant final attempt to take the Rangers with him. Reluctantly, she increased the power to her weapons.

"Ms Morgan, you're not really going to..."

"We have to do it!" Kendall told her.

"But it's TYLER!" Shelby screamed at her. "Can't you...pull rank on him or something?"

"I may be the boss in the museum; I'm sure as hell the boss in my lab!" Kendall said as she had to gulp, hating the words that were about to come out of her mouth. "But the Red Energem chose him for a reason. In the field, he calls the shots...even if they're aimed at him!"

Kendall targeted several of the ship's vital systems, before bringing her Zord around, firing all available weapons as she flew straight towards it.

In the Bridge, Tyler and Sledge had resumed their fight. Even with his powers, Tyler knew that Sledge was the most powerful being he had ever faced. His speed compensated for the difference in strength and size, but he knew that the cramped fighting conditions favoured him in the long run. They both stumbled into each other as the ship rocked and warning sirens started to sound.

"You fool!" Sledge yelled at him, shoving Tyler aside. "Do you know what you've done?"

"I've ensured you won't be hurting anyone ever again!" Tyler stated as he watched Sledge struggling with the controls. He didn't stop to think, looking at the controls he saw they were already descending towards the Earth. He slammed his Tyranno Smasher into the split in Sledge's armour, knocking him to the ground. He brought his weapon down into the controls, again and again, utterly destroying the control panel. "It's over Sledge!"

The Plesio Zord pursued the ship as it descended on its journey towards the Earth. Kendall continued to fire into its engines, crippling them to prevent any attempt to prevent its fall to Earth.

"I've calculated its trajectory, it won't hit the city!" Kendall told Shelby as the ship started to come down through the atmosphere, glowing brightly as it created a fiery streak through the air. "If all goes well, it'll break up on re-entry. If not...at least it won't come down over major population areas. I won't destroy it until Tyler..."

"Ms Morgan, why haven't you destroyed the ship yet?" Tyler yelled through the communicator.

"Tyler, it's coming down at hundreds of miles an hour! If it doesn't break up on re-entry, it'll probably be destroyed on impact!" Kendall told him.

"Probably isn't good enough!" Tyler shouted at her. "Blow this thing to hell!"

"I'm not destroying that ship until you get into a pod!" Kendall told him.

"I'm nowhere near a pod; now blow this thing to hell!" Tyler screamed again. Kendall knew what her sense of duty told her she should do. She also knew what her humanity told her to do. Her hand strayed off the firing controls.

"No!" She put down flatly. "I'm not destroying that ship while you're on it!"

"Then there's a way to sort that problem isn't there?" Tyler responded. As the ship finally broke through the atmosphere, he used his Tyranno Smasher to smash open the side of the bridge, creating a hole to the outside. He leapt from the ship, and started tumbling towards the Earth.

"Tyler!" Shelby screamed. "TYLER!"

"I'm following him!" Kendall assured her. "If we're fast enough we can catch him!"

Tyler saw the Plesio Zord change direction, and he knew they were coming for him, but as he plummeted towards the Earth, he resigned himself to his fate. He knew all about terminal velocity, his dad had told him about the many times he had parachuted into countries where he didn't actually have a visa to dig.

He could feel pressure building in his extremities, especially in his head as the blood rushed out from his heart. His ears started ringing and his face felt warm. His vision started to blur, and he knew it wouldn't be long before he blacked out. He saw the Plesio Zord pulling up, realising that Kendall probably had to abandon the dive when she was getting too close to the ground to be able to pull up. He knew the Ranger suits saved them all from a lot, but a freefall from orbit...his vision started to trim with black, but just before he passed out, he felt a set of arms grabbing him. Was this what death felt like?

A while later, Tyler's eyes started to flicker open, and he found himself staring up at bright lights. Eventually, a dark shape blocked some of the light.

"Tyler?" A distorted voice asked. "He's awake! Tyler?"

A few more forms surrounded him, and another leaned over him.

"Move aside, give me some room." Another distorted voice instructed, before shining another light directly into his eye...yeah, that was what he needed! "Tyler, can you speak to me?"

"Will you stop shining lights in my eyes?" He asked, before trying to sit up. He felt pain, which kind of went against his whole theory of being dead...at least...as far as he knew of what death was meant to be. He sat up, clutching his head and started to focus. Eventually the surroundings started to make a little more sense. He could see his friends, most of them anyway, standing around. Keeper, Riley, Chase, Koda, Ivan, Shelby and Kendall were all standing around him.

"You're back in the Dino Lab." Kendall informed him. "We brought you here after the battle."

"You gave us quite a scare there mate." Chase told him. "Shelby here was having kittens! OW!"

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Shelby screamed at him. "Jumping out of a SPACE SHIP?"

"I'll admit, it was a pretty wild ride." Tyler chuckled, but that only earned him an angry smack in the chest from Shelby. "Hey, ribs!"

"They're only cracked right now." Kendall assured him. "They'll be completely healed by tomorrow."

"Tyler alright!" Koda yelled excitedly, snatching him in a tight hug. Tyler laughed as he was lifted clean off the bench.

"Whoa, easy there, I do still need to breathe." Tyler reminded him. "Besides, how could anything bad happen when I have this team? I appreciate the catch by the way."

"Catch?" Shelby asked him.

"Yeah, one of you caught me." Tyler stated.

"Tyler...none of us caught you." Kendall told him as they stared at him.

"Yeah, I remember, I felt one of you grab me right before I passed out!" Tyler answered. They all looked to each other, and shook their heads.

"Tyler...none of us were anywhere near you when you hit the ground." Kendall told him. "We found you in the woods about an hour ago."

"None of you caught me?" Tyler asked. They all shook their heads. "Then...who did?"

Meanwhile, Phillipe arrived back at the hospital, making his way through. No one tried to stop him; they had seen him there before and knew he was no danger to them. It wouldn't have mattered much anyway; there wasn't anything that was going to stop him.

He found Margaret's room and headed inside, finding her sleeping on the bed. He couldn't help smiling to see her, and he came across, sitting down beside her. He saw that the television was on the news channel and presumed she had turned it on to catch what happened in the battle. He took a seat next to her and picked up the remote, turning it off.

"Hey." Margaret said in a weary voice, rubbing her eyes a little. "I was watching that."

"That's an impressive trick watching television with your eyes closed." He chuckled. Margaret smiled at him.

"So, you won?" She asked him. He just nodded to confirm the detail.

"We won the big one." He told her. "Sledge and his crew won't be back."

He took her hand in his, while running another hand over her hair in a comforting gesture.

"So now, all you have to worry about is getting better." He told her. Margaret took a deep breath.

"I...I've been given a couple of treatment options." She told him. "I wanted to wait for you to make the decision."

"Me?" He asked. "Margaret, all that matters..."

"My healthcare plan is kind of with my employer...which would be your dad by the way." She reminded him. Phillipe just smiled.

"Screw the plan." He told her. "Whatever option you choose, whichever has the best chance for success, that's what we'll be doing."

"But your dad..."

"Screw the plan." Phillipe reiterated. "Whatever it takes, you have my word, that's what we'll do."


	23. Kendall's Call

Fury spluttered and coughed as he started to slowly come to. He could barely see anything. Even if his vision wasn't blurry, there was smoke everywhere. There were some fires around about, and some of the systems were sparking from broken electronics. He tried to move, but he was pinned down by a fallen support beam.

He was pinned, face-down, having been taken down by the beam as he tried to direct the panicking minions as the ship came down. He braced his hands against the floor and tried to push up, but his strength failed him. He saw a dark shape coming towards him through the smoke.

"Please...help me..." He croaked out as he coughed some more. As the figure came closer, he could see the silhouette, it wasn't a Spike Ball, his preferred choice to help try and free him given their strength. Hell, right now he'd even take a vivik, but as he saw the huge, floppy hat, he groaned aloud. As the figure stepped right up close to him, he could see white stuffing flopping out of a large tear down his leg.

"Fury!" Curio said as he saw the fallen feline warrior.

"Just my luck YOU would be one of the few that survived!" Fury grumbled.

"Well, I AM made mostly of cushions." Curio reminded him. Fury just growled in frustration.

"Go and fetch someone useful will you?" He demanded.

"Now, that's not a very nice thing to say." Curio said as he said as he looked on the prone form of Fury. "Especially not when you're looking so...vulnerable!"

Fury realised what he meant. Right now, he was trapped, pinned to the ground, and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. Curio got a wicked look on his face.

"Now, I seem to remember a certain incident when you had me in a vulnerable position. How did that end again?" Curio asked him. "Oh...let me refresh your memory. Wrench spent the day stitching me back together!"

Fury started to struggle, stretching out with his one free arm for his sword, but his fingertips barely grazed its handle. Curio saw him reaching and snatched up the sword. Fury could only look up at the creature as he held the sword tightly.

"I just wonder...can YOU be stitched back together so easily?" Curio mused, before turning the sword point-down, gripping it tightly with both hands. "I guess there's one way to find out!"

Fury could only lose his eyes as the sword came down, only to hear a loud clang. He opened his eyes to see that the point had been driven into the floor beside him. Curio strained against the sword, using it to lever up the girder.

"PUSH!" Curio called out. Fury braced and pushed up as hard as he could, helping with the lift, before sliding out. Curio held it up for a moment, allowing Fury to slide out, before dropping the girder with a loud crash. Curio grabbed Fury and helped him to his feet.

"Have you seen anyone else? Is anyone else around?" Fury asked him. Curio just nodded.

"Poisandra is around, she's looking for Sledge." Curio told him. "There was a hole in the side of the cockpit; we think he might have been sucked out!"

"Is anyone else here?" Fury asked him.

"I saw some Spike Balls and some viviks...most of the monsters in the cell blocks are fine." Curio informed him. "Sledge definitely built this thing to last!"

"Good, then once we get this place back into some kind of working order; we have forces to take revenge on the Rangers!" Fury told him as they walked through the corridors.

"You think so?" Curio asked him, kicking a piece of debris down the hall as they headed for the cell blocks. "Because...this place is pretty messed up!"

"It'll be a long time before it's going anywhere, but it shouldn't take too long to get most of the systems back online...once we find that useless lump Wrench."

"So you still want to fight the Rangers?" Curio asked him.

"I want the Energems!" Fury yelled at him.

"But we've already barely survived once..."

"Well, WHAT THE HELL ELSE ARE WE GOING TO DO?" Fury demanded angrily. "They LITERALLY burned our ship! We can't exactly go home; we're stranded here because of them!"

"So, if we are going to be sticking around, who's going to lead us?" Curio asked. Fury just glowered at him.

"I think THAT should be obvious!" He responded as he shoved him down the hall, past the door to the solitary block. "Now, find some guards and take a roll call and an inventory! Let's see what we still have at our disposal!"

As they went on their way, they didn't notice a pair of glowing eyes just a little way behind the huge door to the solitary block.

"Interesting, VERY interesting!" A gravelly voice stated. "It's MY turn now!"

Back at the museum, the Rangers, except for Phillipe, were all sitting around in the ruins of the Dino Lab. Kendall had a large smile on her face as she brought over a stool, taking a seat.

"You know, you seem pretty upbeat for a museum director whose museum is pretty much wrecked." Riley stated. Kendall just shrugged.

"What can I say? The exhibits are pretty much undamaged, and that's the important thing right?" She asked in response. "Anton will cover anything the insurance won't, and all things considered, I'd say today's been pretty successful!"

"I'll say, now Sledge is gone for good!" Shelby announced. "With him out of the picture, there's no one to stop us searching for the remaining Energems!"

"Yeah...about that." Kendall said as she looked around the room. "This...this was all out of necessity. It was never meant to be a permanent deal."

"What are you saying?" Shelby asked her.

"Well, like you said, with Sledge gone, there's no real reason for the Rangers." Kendall informed them.

"But...the other Energems." Riley protested.

"Koda, Ivan and of course Kendall will remain to search for the remaining Energems." Keeper told them. "Prince Phillipe has kindly agreed to help where he can. He has resources through his political connections we do not."

"The fact is, you've all done an incredible job, and we couldn't have possibly asked for anywhere near as much as you've all given." Kendall continued. "Which is why, we can't possibly ask for anything more. You all have your own lives to be getting on with."

"But..."

"We've all taken you from your lives and your own pursuits, and you've been great in giving that up." Kendall complimented them. "Now, we can't in good conscience ask you to put your own lives on hold any longer."

The team all looked around each other for a moment. They had all known that the day would come, that their tenure as Rangers would be over. They had all complained at times about the sacrifices they made and how they wished for the danger to the world to be over and be able to return to their lives...but now it was here...

"I...guess it's been a long time since I've seen my mom and my brother." Riley answered. "Ms Morgan, your tuition here's been great, and I really love the city and want to come back but...I've missed home."

"I completely understand Riley." Kendall assured him. "Just know, Anton's scholarships are still real. You'll be able to come back when you want to carry on your studies."

"It's been ages since I've seen mum." Chase responded. "I'll stick around for a bit to get stuff ready, but I still have that open-ended ticket Chloe gave me to use."

"I can go back to looking for my dad." Tyler said quietly. Keeper reached out his hand.

"Until we find the bearer of the Aqua Energem and the Silver Energem, you will remain bonded to your Energems." Keeper told them. "They will call to you if you are needed."

"Until then...I guess this is it." Kendall responded as she produced a bottle of champagne. Ivan started to hand out the glasses as Kendall popped the cork. "Anton always makes sure I have a bottle or two of this in storage. I usually save this for when we've made a major discovery or something. I think this qualifies."

She started pouring the glasses as Ivan started to hand them out.

"Whatever you all decide to do, I want you all to know...you're the best dig team I've ever led." Kendall told them.

"We're the ONLY dig team you ever led." Chase chuckled in response. Shelby slapped him across the back of his head. It was true, before working for Anton; she'd been on many dig teams, but never actually led one.

"Thank you Shelby." Kendall laughed, knowing that she would miss this dynamic. She had grown to appreciate her team, even if they did drive her up the wall on numerous occasions. "What I was going to say is whatever you want to do now, just know...you'll all always have jobs here. To..."

"My family!" Koda squealed, tears running down his face as he ran across the room, scooping up Chase, Shelby and Tyler in a massive hug. Once again, Koda had managed to sum up much of what everyone was feeling in a very simple way. They would always be connected, no matter what happened.

The party went on for a while, late into the night. Keeper was the first to depart, going back to...wherever it was he disappeared to. It wasn't really a wild party, more of a low-key affair where they shared laughs and recounted tales from their tenure.

"We should probably be going." Chase said as he finished his glass and got up. "I'll stick around for a while, but I need to arrange a flight."

"I should probably be going too." Riley added. "If we leave early, I should be able to get most of the way back to Millport before the traffic gets too bad."

"I guess then there's only one thing left to do." Tyler said, stepping up to the crystal beds, and extending his hand, allowing the Red Energem to fly back to its housing. In turn, Chase, Shelby and Riley did likewise.

"It feels weird to not be taking it with me." Tyler admitted. "But I guess I've got more adventures to come."

Shelby, Chase, Riley, Ivan and Tyler all headed for the elevator, calling it down. It was only as they stepped onto the elevator that they realised that Kendall hadn't done likewise.

"Aren't you coming Ms Morgan?" Shelby asked.

"Yeah, I mean you'll need a ride back to the apartment." Tyler told her. "You might not be the size of a Barbie doll anymore, but somehow I think you'll have a little trouble reaching the pedals on the truck."

"I'll get a cab." Kendall told them. "I've got something to do here before I go home."

They headed up in the elevator, while Koda with a huge yawn made his way towards his cave, leaving Kendall alone in the lab once more. She looked around, feeling rather odd about how empty it seemed. She had been here on her own many times. For a lot of those instances, she actually preferred to be there on her own, so that she could work without distractions. No Riley and his stupid tennis ball machine going off every few seconds, no Chase insisting on treating her sterile lab as a mechanic's bench for his skateboard, no Shelby insisting on babbling to her asking about more journal recommendations or reading for her online courses. Now that it was quiet though...it almost seemed too quiet.

It did offer her one opportunity though. Reaching into her shirt, she pulled out the necklace she always wore, a simple key on it. She had worn it for a long time, being gifted it a long time ago, back when she was a young girl.

She looked around to make sure she really was alone. Once she was satisfied that she was, she went to one of her workbenches, and opened a secret compartment, pulling out a small, silver case.

She took the key, opening the case, revealing it to be a kind of communicator. Her hands trembled as she tuned it in. It was a while before she got an answer.

"Kendall?" A voice on the other end asked. It took a moment for the image to clear up. "Kendall, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." She responded. "I...I just wanted to talk to you."

"Kendall, I gave you that communicator for emergencies." The other person responded. Kendall smiled to see her face.

"Yes, I know Aunt Kendrix, it's just...something happened." Kendall told her, pulling out her Energem. "Something amazing happened. The Purple Energem...it bonded to me. I'm the Purple Ranger."

"Kendall, that's...that's wonderful!" Her aunt responded. Tears ran down Kendall's face, but she couldn't stop smiling as she told her aunt that she had followed in her footsteps. Kendrix had always been Kendall's idol, even before she had gone on the Terra Venture mission. She had been thrilled when she became the superhero Kendall always saw her as. She knew all about Kendrix's sacrifice, something that had devastated her as a young girl, but a source of pride. When she came back to help the Lightspeed team, she had been allowed to make a stop at home. One of the happiest days of her life was when Kendrix had turned up on her doorstep to explain her resurrection. "You're a Ranger? I knew you had it in you!"

"I...I still can't believe it myself, it just doesn't feel real." Kendall said, wiping away a couple of tears. "Almost all of the Energems have been found. I was starting to think it would never happen..."

"You should never have doubted yourself for a moment. I've always known you had it in you, ever since you were a little girl!" Kendrix complimented her niece. There was a crash in the background, and Kendrix looked around. "Will you two pack it in?"

"What was that?" Kendall asked her.

"Oh, that's just your uncle Kai and your cousin." Kendrix told her. "He's decided to teach her martial arts now she's going to high school. He seems to think now she's looking at boys she needs distracting."

"My cousin?" Kendrix asked her. She didn't contact her aunt often. The communicator had limited power, and would only last a few minutes at a time before needing to be recharged. "Kendall is...dating?"

"Not yet, but I can't imagine it'll be too long." Kendrix chuckled. "She IS 15 you know. It's one of the highlights of high school."

"Yeah, that wasn't really my high school experience." Kendall answered, resting her elbow on the table and resting her face on her hand. "So...how are the rest of the family anyway?"


	24. Parting Ways

The following day, things were busy around the museum, but not because there were many customers or anything, but because everyone was preparing to go their own ways. While the plan had originally been to head out early, those that were leaving had been convinced to go to the museum in order to say their goodbyes.

Chase held Allison, kissing her softly as Tyler and Riley loaded up the jeep. He was bumming a ride to the airport in order to spare himself the cab fare. Allison wasn't thrilled about the fact he was leaving, but she understood why he was. Her family had immigrated to the US, but his mom and his sister were still back home in New Zealand. It wasn't like she could just drop everything and leave with him at the drop of a hat, even if she did have the money for a ticket. Kendall was already losing three full-time staff members for the foreseeable future.

"I promise I'll call when I get there." He told her, cradling her chin with his hand. "I'll e-mail all the time."

"You better." Allison warned him. She was heartbroken to see him go. Although they had, as was the nature of their relationship, tried to keep things casual and had treated it more as a case of Chase going for a holiday, there was a part of her that was realistic about things. His Ranger duties were all that really tied him to the States. While he enjoyed his job at the museum, it wasn't like he made any secret of the fact he didn't plan on it being all he would do with the rest of his life. Although she'd have loved it if he stayed for her, but she wasn't certain they were at that stage in their relationship, and his family was a huge draw to remain in New Zealand. As much as she wanted to be happy for Chase to go, she knew that there was a decent chance that once he got home, if he was never called back into action, that there would be no reason to return. "I'll miss you."

"You know I'll miss you too." He responded.

"Come on Chase, if we wait much longer you're going to miss your flight!" Tyler called out as he continued loading up. "Come and pack some of this stuff would you?"

Leanne reached for one of the suitcases that was lying on the ground.

"Hey, careful that one's really..." Tyler tailed off as he watched her lift it effortlessly off the ground and place it in the back. "...heavy. Whoa!"

"Yoga." She said as she saw him staring at her. "It's a killer workout."

"Yeah...it looks that way." Riley responded. "Hey, don't worry Ms Morgan; I'll only be gone a few weeks. Not all of us are abandoning you for good."

"Say, where's Shelby?" Chase asked. "I thought she'd have been here to see you off for sure."

"We kind of already said our goodbyes." Tyler answered. "So, I guess...this is it."

"Remember, all of you, we're only a call away." Kendall assured them. "There's always a place for you here."

"Good luck looking for your dad." Allison told Tyler. He smiled.

"Thanks. I appreciate that." He answered as Riley and Chase climbed into the jeep. "Koda, if you win a title and I don't see a picture I'm going to be super pissed!"

Koda just nodded in response, but kept quiet. He had already left one family behind, and watching another leave was difficult for him. He knew that Riley was going to come back in a few weeks to renew his scholarship, but there wasn't any such guarantee with Chase and Tyler. Alessandra kept close to his side, holding him in a comforting gesture.

"Ms Morgan, thanks for all the research you did. These notes you made from my dad's journals." He said gratefully. One of the down-sides of the time he'd spent as a Ranger was that he had to delay his search for his father. Kendall had agreed to use what resources she had to help him make sense of his father's diary, and to give him some more ideas of places he might have been in the hopes of figuring out where he might find more information about what happened to him. It wasn't much, but having been searching for months before arriving in Amber Beach, it was the next best thing to have been continuing his search. "When Shelby gets here...can you tell her...?"

"I will." She replied as she handed over her work. "Just let me know if there's anything else I can do."

"Alright, then I guess this is time!" Tyler said as he went to the side of his jeep, swinging himself into the driver's seat. Ivan, Koda, Alessandra, Leanne, Allison and Kendall all waved as they started to pull out. They had barely moved when a cab pulled into the parking lot. Shelby got out, running right for them.

"WAIT!" She screamed, running at the front of the jeep, waving her hands in the air. Tyler had to hammer on the brakes as she stood in front of the jeep, slamming her hands onto the hood. "Thank God I'm not too late."

"Shelby? What the hell?" Chase called out. "We almost turned you into a greasy spot on the parking lot!"

"Thank God you haven't left yet!" Shelby reiterated, ignoring Chase. Tyler just looked confused.

"Wait...what are you doing here?" Tyler asked her. "I thought you said last night..."

"About that, I've been thinking about this a lot and..." She said, going back to the cab driver and taking a bag out of the back. "I thought, maybe I could go with you?"

"What?" Tyler asked.

"WHAT?" Kendall added, her eyebrows shooting up. Shelby just looked to Tyler, shifting a little uncomfortably.

"Well...your dad was a Palaeontologist so; maybe it might be handy to have a di-know-it-all along for the ride?" She asked him.

"Uh...Shelby?" Kendall tried to interject, only for Shelby to ignore her.

"I can pay my own way and..."

"I'd love that!" Tyler said, hugging her tightly.

"Uh...Shelby?" Kendall said, trying again to interject.

"Guys! Make some room!" Tyler declared, at which Shelby threw her bag into the back and started to climb in.

"Tyler, this is already a pretty tight fit..."

"Come on Chase, you only have to make it as far as the airport." Tyler reminded them. "Alright guys, it's been awesome!"

With that, he pulled out of the parking lot, leaving the museum behind. Everyone was waving...all except for Kendall.

"SHELBY!" She screamed after the jeep, but by now they were already turning out onto the main road. She just threw her hands up in the air. "Great, now I've just lost another full-time employee! Good GRIEF!"

"Come on Ms Morgan, you still have us." Allison reminded her. Kendall just sighed and nodded in response.

"Well...come on then." She responded to them. "Ivan, Koda, you're with me. Those last two Energems won't find themselves."

Meanwhile, on Sledge's ship, Fury, Curio and the newly-repaired Wrench were busy taking stock of their situation. The battle and the following crash had left the ship in a bad way, but it was for the most part intact. It would serve, at least for the time being as a shelter if nothing else. Poisandra was somewhere in the ship, searching every possible nook and cranny for her beloved Sledge, leaving most of the rest of the work to the others. Curio put down a crate, opening it up to reveal some freeze-dried snacks.

"Most of the perishables have...well...perished, but we do have some rations." Curio stated as Fury looked to the packets of food. "It should last us a while at least before we need to find new supplies."

"That's something at least." Fury said gruffly, shuffling around the packets. The prospect of a diet of jerky, canned food and freeze-dried meals was not exactly appealing, but right now he didn't have much of an option. It wasn't like Sledge's money was worth much on Earth, even if they could find a shop that would sell to them and not immediately raise the alarm. He wasn't above theft, but right now they were in no real state to start another war with the Rangers, at least until they formed a long-term plan. "Wrench! What's taking so long with the diagnostic?"

"I told you this would take time!" Wrench yelled in response. "I'd be a lot further on if that useless bunch of pillows had put me back together correctly."

"I did my best..."

"You didn't think there was something wrong when my knees bent BACKWARDS?" Wrench complained loudly. "You put my legs on back to front you flea-bitten...!"

Fury just snarled and slammed his sword down to make a point. It wasn't lost on Wrench.

"Propulsion and life-support are shot. We won't need life-support since we're on the surface now, but we're not getting this thing off the ground any time soon." Wrench said as he showed Fury the schematics he had managed to put together on one of the few working computers. "I should have heating up and running soon. Fortunately the Magna Beam and the cloaking device are still working."

"At least we know the Rangers won't disturb us until we've managed to regroup." Fury answered. "Now we have a ship full of prisoners, so we have no shortage of soldiers. There's plenty of work to go around, so I don't want to see anyone slacking off."

"Who died and made you the boss?" Wrench asked in response. Fury just clenched his fist around the handle of his sword tightly.

"Do you want to dispute the matter?" He asked. Wrench thought about it for a moment, before shaking his head. Fury closed over the cases of food and locked them shut.

"If we are going to be living here, I want this place back in a liveable condition as soon as possible!" He stated. "If I see anyone not working, they don't eat! Is that understood?"

Wrench and Curio both nodded, at which Fury finally relaxed.

"I'm glad we understand each other." He replied. "Now, my quarters were destroyed, so I'm going to see if I can find anything worth salvaging and find the best available cell for myself. You two get everyone working!"

Over at the airport, Tyler, Shelby and Riley left the terminal after seeing Chase to the gate. They were being escorted out by security, who did not seem at all pleased with them.

"OK, OK, we're leaving!" Riley protested as he was shoved roughly out the door. "Jeez, trust Chase to get us into trouble with airport security."

"Well at least they let him through the gate." Tyler chuckled in response. "I was sure he was going to miss his flight."

"So, I guess the next stop is Millport." Shelby said with a bright smile as they got back into Tyler's jeep. "So are you looking forward to being home?"

"For a while, sure." Riley answered. "I've missed my mom and Matt and Rubik like crazy, but after a few weeks of mucking out pig pens...I'm sure I'll be more than ready to get back to work."

"Ms Morgan said you'd be starting college level work next year." Tyler replied as he pulled out. "That sounds pretty awesome."

"It is, I just need to figure out what to major in." Riley told them. "I'd also like to help Ms Morgan with her search. I think I might have a theory where the other Energems might be."

"Really?" Shelby asked him.

"Well, when I say where...I mean I think I might have a theory as to where they might have gone." Riley clarified. "The Energems are connected to the dinosaurs that were used to make the Zords right?"

"Yeah?" Tyler asked.

"Well...the Ankylo Zord was found on Gosei's island." Riley reminded them. "Which means that whoever found the Aqua Energem..."

"Must have been on Gosei's island!" Tyler concluded. "But...only the Megaforce Rangers went there..."

"That we know of!" Riley corrected him. "Remember that we found the island by accident. Maybe someone else did too."

"But the Aqua Ranger showed up in Amber Beach." Shelby added. "He saved Leanne and Allison."

"All that means is that he left the island. The reason he left the Ankylo Zord is probably because he couldn't find the island again when he left." Riley said, voicing his theory out loud. "And since the closest possible coastline to Gosei's island is in Harwood..."

"Harwood's only a few miles from Amber Beach." Tyler concluded. "We could have missed the Aqua Ranger by moments and not even known it."

"Have you told Ms Morgan any of this?" Shelby asked him. Riley just shook his head.

"It's mostly conjecture and guess work." Riley admitted. "I'd really like to do a little more work before I suggest any of it."

"Well I'm sure you'll have plenty of time for that." Shelby answered. "So, how about us Tyler, where are we going?"

Back at the museum, things were a little more fraught than they should have been. Koda and Ivan had been put to work dealing with the exhibits, leaving Leanne and Allison in the cafe. Since the rest of the team had departed, Kendall had shut herself up in her lab.

The door opened, and a man walked in, taking a look around. He smiled as he saw the exhibits. He was no stranger to museums, he had advised quite a few in his time. He was dressed in tan combat trousers and an aquamarine plaid shirt. James swept some hair from his face and took a deep breath as he prepared for what he was sure would be the hardest thing he'd ever do. He made his way over to the nearest exhibit, checking the plaque on it.

"Ankylosaurus." He mused quietly. "It's been quite a while hasn't it?"

"Actually that's one of our newer exhibits." Ivan said as he came up to the man. "We've had that one on display now about...four months?"

"It's a marvellous specimen...it's completely intact!" He commented as he looked around. "I don't think there's a single replacement part."

"They were very robust creatures." Ivan stated. "I believe Ms Morgan said...they were like a Sherman Tank on legs."

"That's a pretty accurate description. I think I'd like this Ms Morgan." He answered.

"Well, unfortunately she is rather busy at the moment." Ivan told him. "I could make an appointment..."

"No, there's someone else I'm here to see." James said nervously. He started to fidget uncomfortably as he looked to the young man standing before him. "I've been told that...Tyler Nevarro works here?"

"I'm afraid your timing has been most unfortunate." Ivan replied sympathetically. "I'm afraid Tyler has left."

"Oh...well...is he on shift tomorrow?" James asked him.

"You misunderstand sir. He has left the city." Ivan clarified. "In truth, I do not know if he will return."

"I see." James replied sadly. He had hoped to see Tyler, to finally explain to him what had happened all those years ago. He had originally intended to leave the city himself when he confirmed that Tyler was there. He had been pursued by the monster ever since he had found the mysterious aquamarine crystal a decade ago. He had not returned home to his family out of fear he would endanger them by leading the creature to them. However, before he left, he had heard of the battle and felt irresistibly drawn to help. It was well underway by the time he arrived, though he had arrived in time to see the Red Ranger fall from the spaceship. He used all the powers his crystal gave him to catch the stricken Ranger.

The Red Ranger was so weak when they landed that he had removed his helmet to help him breathe more easily. He got the shock of his life when he realised that he was staring into the face of his son.

He had fled when he heard the others approaching, fearing it was not time yet to answer questions, but now he had a chance to think, he realised...his son was just like him. He had somehow found powers just like him. His suit was similar to the one that James could summon in times of need. He had thought, if his son had those powers...perhaps he would not be in danger revealing himself. Perhaps he could finally tell his son why he hadn't seen him since before his eighth birthday. Ivan could see that the stranger looked troubled.

"I may be able to get him to contact you." Ivan suggested. "You are...?"

"I'm..." James paused, and thought better of it. He no more looked like the father of an 18 year old son than this stranger looked like a grandfather. "I'm a friend of the family. I was in town and I thought I'd catch up."

"Well, I'm sorry you missed him." Ivan stated.

"So am I." James responded as he walked away. He bumped into Kendall as he was leaving. "Sorry miss."

"That's alright." Kendall responded, barely looking at him. She paused for a moment a few steps later, turning around only to see him disappear out of the door. She furrowed her brows, before shaking her head. "No, it couldn't have been."

"Ms Morgan?" Ivan asked her.

"Could you and Koda meet me in the lab right away? We've got a lot to discuss about what we do next." She told him.

"I'll fetch Koda immediately." Ivan told her as he went to find Koda. Kendall looked once more to the door, before shaking her head and dismissing what she thought she had seen. She'd been through a lot recently. Clearly her mind was playing tricks on her.

FIN

 **A/N:** Well, there it is folks, I've FINALLY got to the end of the Dino Charge portion of the story, but fear not...the story will continue!

I'd like to thank all my loyal readers and reviewers. I know there have been a lot of delays and such. While some of this is down to me finding it difficult to get a hold of the source material and having to wait for it to air here, and some of it is down to adulting and other RL BS that is nowhere near as fun as writing these stories, I am well aware that I am quite a way behind. Thank you all for your patience, and fear not. The story will continue soon.


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